Elegy of Hope
by ShadowX-Over.Writer
Summary: A secret lay hidden behind gated walls becomes uncovered when Haruka accidentally stumbles across it. What lays in store for her now that her fate has been intertwined with many others, not knowing where the threads of destiny may lead her?
1. Cherry Blossoms in Full Bloom

**_Chapter 1: Cherry Blossoms in Full Bloom  
_**

Coming back to the city was always a struggle especially with the excess noise and stifling air. The streets were full of impatient, honking cars and the sidewalk was overrun by hordes of people trying to get somewhere different. Haruka was never fond of city life, as she was more accustomed to living in a smaller town setting.

Having grown up in a more peaceful setting, whenever she came to visit the city, Haruka always felt as if she were thrown into an ocean of sound. However, she had decided to come to the city on her own volition; this was where she had chosen to go to high school once she graduated middle school.

Haruka glanced around, scanning the crowd of people for anyone familiar. She had come to the area where she'd be going to school in hopes of finding a place to live nearby. Thankfully she had a family friend living in the area and he had agreed to help her find an apartment. Since she had the day off from school today, she thought it would be best to start looking now, rather than waiting.

"Haruka!"

Haruka turned and was relieved to see a familiar figure waving over at her down the street. His bright orange hair easy to spot. Haruka's expression brightened as she waved back and hurried over to him. When she reached where he was, she gave him a brief hug and smiled excitedly up at him.

"It's been awhile, hasn't it?" Haruka said.

The man smiled. "A couple years, give or take."

He reached over and ruffled Haruka's hair slightly.

"You've certainly gotten a bit taller since the last time I saw you."

Natsume Asahina was a tall young man with bright orange hair. However, his most noticeable feature to Haruka was the birthmark below his lip and directly on the middle of his chin. She always thought it was funny, finding it a strange place to have a birthmark, much to Natsume's slight annoyance.

As the two of them walked towards Natsume's car, Haruka asked him how his brothers were doing. Natsume glanced to the side and let his shoulders sag a little.

"Just as lively as ever, I suppose. I actually haven't seen them that recently myself."

He was the son of her parents' friend and came from a family of twelve other brothers. Haruka couldn't even imagine having that many siblings and had to give Natsume props for growing up in such a crazy household. While Haruka got along with most of the other Asahina boys, she found Natsume to be the most easy to talk to and be around. Natsume was the only one she kept in contact with, both occasionally sending each other a text or a phone call.

Once the two made it to the car, Haruka hopped into the passenger seat as Natsume slid into the driver's.

"So how do you feel moving on to high school?" Natsume asked as he pulled out into the street from the curb.

"A little nervous honestly," Haruka said as she glanced down at her lap and wrung her fingers. "I mean, this will be the first time I'll be living on my own away from my family. Not to mention I'm still unsure of what career path to take."

"Have you talked to your parents about it?"

Haruka shook her head. "They've been really busy at work lately so I haven't been able to talk to them that much."

Natsume frowned slightly before exhaling loudly through his nostrils. "Well, you have some time. I'm sure you'll figure it out."

Haruka smiled and nodded. "Thanks."

* * *

It wasn't long until they pulled up to a decent sized apartment complex. The outside was fairly nice and all the complexes had a balcony with a glass wall for the railing. When Haruka entered Natsume's complex, she found that while it wasn't too big, it still had a good amount of space.

Several meows caught Haruka's attention and she glanced down to see Natsume's two cats rubbing against his legs. Natsume huffed in feigned annoyance, causing Haruka to giggle. She bent down and offered her hand to one of the cats. Curious, one of them padded over to her and sniffed her outstretched hand before rubbing against it with its cheek.

"So these are Tsubaki and Azusa?" Haruka asked, recalling Natsume mentioning that he got a couple cats in one of their past emails.

"Yeah," Natsume said with a small sigh. "They're as much of a handful as their namesakes."

Haruka giggled once more as she gently stroked the two cats.

"In any case, feel free to take a look around. Do you want anything to drink?" Natsume asked, heading over to the kitchen counter.

"I'm fine, thank you." Haruka said as she stood up and walked further in.

Before she started looking around, an assortment of brightly colored objects caught her eye. Upon closer inspection, Haruka realized they were little animal figurines. There were twelve in total and while the craftsmanship was lacking on some of the details, they were still cute. Though she found it funny how some of them were painted in rather random colors. After staring at them for a little bit, it occurred to Haruka that they were actually the twelve animals of the Chinese Zodiac.

"I didn't know you liked this kind of thing." Haruka said as she admired the little figurines.

"I'm don't. But that was a gift," Natsume said as he started rifling through his cupboards.

"Why is the sheep colored pink?"

"...Weird genetics?"

When Haruka was younger, her grandmother would sometimes tell her the story the Great Race or how the order of the Zodiac came to be. She always found the story cute and found how each of the animals crossed the finish line interesting. It had been a while since she heard the story so she couldn't recall some of the details.

Haruka gave the figurines one final gaze before looking around Natsume's apartment.

It was a little bigger than a usual one person complex, given the space in the two rooms were pretty spacious. Considering that Natsume worked for a well established game company, the quality of the apartment didn't come as a surprise to Haruka.

After she was done looking, she came back into the living room to find Natsume feeding his two cats.

"What do you think?" Natsume asked as he scratched Azusa behind the neck.

"It's nice. It's a little bigger than I could probably afford though." Haruka said.

"Well there are definitely smaller ones in the complex. Not sure how many vacancies there are though. Do you want to go look at other ones?"

Natsume drove the two around the area, looking at several different apartment complexes and talking to the landlords. While there were many different complexes to choose from, Haruka was still a bit unsure of which one to pick.

The sun hung low in the sky, indicating it would be evening soon. The two decided to take a break so Natsume took her to a small cafe for a quick bite to eat.

"Thanks again for helping me look for a place." Haruka said after taking a seat at a table.

"No problem. Any places catch your eye?" Natsume asked as the waitress placed cups of water down on the table.

"There are a lot of really nice apartments. But for some reason I can't settle on one in particular." Haruka said, looking down at her cup with a disheartened expression.

 _Something just doesn't feel right..._

"Well if you can't choose one today, we can always try to find you a place some other time." Natsume offered as he took a sip of his drink.

"Oh, no I couldn't ask you to do that. I know you're really busy with work. Don't worry, I'll definitely make a decision by the end of today!" Haruka said with a confident yet uncertain smile.

Natsume let out another sigh. "If you say so. Just don't go making hasty decisions because you're trying to be considerate."

A look of realization suddenly came over Natsume's face. "Oh, that's right."

Haruka looked up at him confused.

"I almost forgot I had to visit my family's place," Natsume said with a small look of exasperation. "Do you mind if we stop by there on the way back? I need to drop a couple things off."

"That's fine. I don't think I've ever been to your family's place before. We always met up at some sort of celebration or get togethers in rented out places."

Natsume took another sip of his water. "Yeah…"

Once they were done, Natsume paid for the two of them and headed back out onto the road. Haruka stared out the window watching the scenery fly by. She wondered which apartment she should choose. However, honestly, Haruka felt anxious about choosing one. This would be the first time she'd be completely on her own and she wasn't sure if she was mentally prepared for that.

If anything, she would probably fall back on Natsume's apartment complex. At least then she wouldn't be completely alone and he'd just be several rooms or floors away. Though if she did that, it would feel as if she would be relying too much on Natsume.

She had to be independant. This is what she had decided when she chose her school. She couldn't back out now. Oh but how much she wanted to right now. Maybe she should have chosen a school closer to home…

 _Pull it together, Haruka!_

Haruka mentally smacked herself while shaking her head to try and rid herself of that thought.

"Are you okay?" Natsume asked, noticing she had a weird expression.

"Oh, yes! I'm fine!" Haruka said waving a hand in front of her in reassurance.

 _I'll be fine._

Natsume eventually turned down a long, narrow street that was lined with forest on both sides. Haruka turned her gaze to the front and was amazed to see a large area full of houses. Surrounding the perimeter was a tall gate that seemed to stretch for miles.

"What is this place?" Haruka asked.

"My family lives within a gated community." Natsume replied with a rather firm expression.

"That's amazing! I've never seen a gated community before. Aren't they supposed to be more common in America?"

Natsume shrugged. "It is rather rare for there one to be here in Japan."

He drove up to the front gates and flashed a card in front of a sensor. The gates slowly opened with a loud moan and Haruka felt as if she were being brought into a new world. While she wasn't here to stay, it was exciting just to see what was beyond these gates.

The area looked to be a rather rich environment with most of the houses being western themed. It was interesting to Haruka that the houses seemed to be clustered in certain areas while sectioned off from others, like different clans living in the same area. As they kept driving, Haruka noticed that Natsume seemed awfully quiet and on edge ever since they entered the gated community. Before she could ask if he was all right, she noticed something up ahead. They were headed towards what it seemed like another gated off area.

 _A gated community within a gated community?_

The gate that sectioned off the area was a lot smaller than the one gating off the entire perimeter. And unlike the gates they had passed through before, a couple meters of concrete was layered behind the metal bars. There was also a security booth where Natsume had to show his ID to a camera before the gates opened. Upon closer inspection, Haruka could see security cameras stationed along the cement wall. It almost seemed as if they were entering a prison.

Natsume parked the car in a small lot and let out a deep exhale.

"Natsume-san-?" Haruka started but was interrupted when Natsume spoke.

"I just need to drop something off here real quick. Follow me."

"You want me to come with you?" Haruka asked in mild confusion.

Since it was a short visit, Haruka figured she would just sit in the car and wait for him.

"I'd feel better if you came with me." Natsume said in such a serious tone that Haruka knew something was wrong.

However, she had a feeling Natsume wouldn't talk about it. While Natsume is quick to voice his complaints, especially when it involved his brothers, when it came to personal affairs, he kept quiet.

"Stay close and don't wander off." Natsume said as he grabbed a bag from the back seat.

Haruka pouted a little in mild annoyance. Sure, she had a bad sense of direction, but he didn't need to treat her like a little kid. She found her way to the meeting place with Natsume after all without much problem.

As Haruka followed Natsume further into the closed off area, she couldn't help but feel anxiety well up within her. Unlike the rest of the gated community, this area in particular had a different atmosphere. It felt tense, nearly suffocating. Maybe it was because she had seen no one since stepping foot in this place. This place seemed like a ghost town.

A shiver suddenly ran down her spine and she instinctively looked behind her. There was absolutely no one in sight and it gave Haruka goosebumps. For some reason, she had a feeling they were being watched ever since they stepped foot into the new area. The thought made Haruka shudder and she quickly picked up her pace to catch up with Natsume.

"Natsume-san," Haruka said, trying to ease the unsettling atmosphere around them. "Who did you bring those things for?"

"Well, one of my brothers actually lives here," Natsume said, lifting up the bag he was holding. "I decided to get him something while I'm here. I also got a couple things for a few of the other residents."

Haruka glanced inside the bag to see a bottle of alcohol, a video game cartridge (probably one made by his company), an exacto knife, and a bag of freeze dried sardines. She glanced up at Natsume with a questionable look about the strange assortment of items.

Natsume cleared his throat as a small blush dusted his cheeks in embarrassment. "Don't ask."

Haruka giggled a little.

"I didn't know one of your brothers lived here."

Now that she thought about it, Natsume had twelve siblings. However, she only remembered meeting eleven whenever she saw them. One was always missing. Back then she didn't think much about it. Why had she never met him?

As Haruka got lost in her thoughts, a sudden movement caught her eye. She turned towards the direction of the movement and froze. On top of a roof of a nearby house was a tall and slender young man. The sun was directly behind him, obscuring his details. However, from his outline, Haruka could have sworn she saw a pair of ears on top of the mysterious male's head along with a tail behind him.

Before her thoughts could catch up to her, the figure jumped off the roof on the other side, disappearing from sight. Haruka felt frozen. Who… or even what was that?

Noticing that she had stopped, Natsume paused and turned around.

"What's wrong?"

It took a moment for Haruka to tear her gaze away from where she saw the strange person. She brought a hand to her chest, feeling her heart beating sporadically. What was this feeling?

"I…" Haruka paused as she pointed to one of the houses. "I thought I saw someone standing over there."

Natsume glanced over to where she pointed and frowned.

"Come on, we're almost there." Natsume said, as he continued walking.

Haruka threw the roof one final look before hurrying to catch up with Natsume. They eventually stopped at a Japanese styled house, complete with paper sliding doors. Natsume rang the doorbell a couple times and grunted in annoyance when no one answered.

"I told him I was stopping by today." Natsume muttered under his breath before he started digging into his pockets for a key.

"Hold on one second, Haruka. I'm just going to drop this off inside and then we can go."

Haruka nodded as Natsume opened up the door and walked inside. While Haruka waited, she couldn't help but think back to the person she saw on the roof. Did she just imagine those strange animal characteristics or were they actually… Haruka shook her head trying to clear her thoughts. Worrying about it now won't do her any good.

Her thoughts were interrupted when a strange noise could be heard from a distance. Haruka glanced up, her eyes darting back and forth. She turned back to the house and wondered if Natsume accidentally knocked something over. Before she could call him, she heard several more strange noises. It sounded like the clash of metal on metal.

Without warning, Haruka heard a sudden shout and something came crashing into the ground in front of one of the nearby houses. The impact sent a small dust cloud around the object, obscuring its details. Haruka let out a surprised cry as she jumped a couple steps backwards in shock.

 _What in the world...?_

As the dust started to settle, Haruka realized that the "object" lying on the ground was more person-shaped. And after a moment, it started moving and suddenly sat up, causing Haruka to realize it was a person with a start.

Wait a moment. From how they slammed into the ground, they shouldn't be moving, let alone conscious.

Before Haruka could continue her thoughts, something flew over to the person with amazing speed and slammed into them. Another loud, sharp clang sounded, causing Haruka to wince. When she looked back, the scene in front of her left her speechless.

Two people were currently locked in a standstill with different weapons. One person stood with a leg caught in mid kick, with braces covering both legs. The person wore a long, turtleneck sweatshirt and was rather short in stature. The other person who was crouching wore a jacket with a hoodie and had two long, twin swords that were being used to defend against the other's kick.

The person who had leg braces suddenly jumped an unrealistically far distance away from the other, allowing the crouching person to get back to their feet. The person with twin swords paused to crack their neck before they suddenly bolted towards the other with unnatural speed.

Haruka's breath caught in her throat as she watched as the two attacked with amazing speed. Despite being a good distance away from the two fighters, Haruka could feel their intensity. Every strike felt as if something were crying out and the air rippled with ferocity. For a brief moment, Haruka could have sworn she saw animal-like shaped auras surround the two of them as they continued exchanging blows.

The one with leg braces flipped out of the way of the other person's strike and countered with a powerful drive with their knee. The other stood their ground and swung their twin swords at the oncoming attack.

When the attacks collided, Haruka heard the crackle of electricity and the force of the impact sent both fighters flying backwards. Before she realized it, one of the combatants was headed directly towards her. Her mind went blank as everything seemed to move in slow motion. Before she was bowled over, Haruka suddenly felt as if she were being lifted into the air. She immediately closed her eyes as she felt herself being swept out of the way, followed by a loud crash.

"Whoo, that could have been messy."

Haruka slowly opened her eyes and was surprised to see a young woman goofily smiling down at her.

"Who…who are you?"


	2. Angel of the Ladder

**_Chapter 2: Angel of the Ladder  
_**

The woman set Haruka down as Haruka stared at the young woman in a mixture of shock and awe.

She had rather unkempt dark, brown hair that was tied up in a messy ponytail. Her bangs parted in the middle, baring her forehead. Sitting comfortably on her face were a pair of oval-shaped glasses that were placed in front of wide brown eyes. She wore a simple, yellow buttoned-up shirt with the sleeves rolled up and light gray jeans that were slightly worn on the bottom. She was a little taller than the average woman and stood several inches above Haruka.

Realizing she was staring, Haruka blushed in embarrassment and quickly bowed. "T-thank you for saving me!"

The woman smiled and waved her hand in front of her. "It was no big deal really."

Haruka glanced to the side and was horrified to see that the person who had nearly been blown into her now lay crumpled in a pile of rubble on the front porch of the house. Broken, wooden floorboards were strewn all over the place and the person was hunched over amongst the wreckage, unmoving. He looked as if he were...

"Is...is he…?" Haruka stammered, trembling in horror.

"Haruka!" Natsume cried as he rushed out of the house. "Are you alri-"

He visibly froze when he spotted the person lying in a pile of rubble. His eyes widened in alarm and he quickly glanced over at Haruka. However, an expression of confusion and surprise came over his face when he noticed the other woman.

"Hanji?"

"Yo!" Hanji said as she gave a wave with a flick of her wrist.

Haruka glanced from Natsume to Hanji and then back at the unmoving figure in front of them. Why were they acting so calm when someone possibly was dead in front of them? She desperately wanted to say something, but her voice was caught in her throat. Her heart hammered wildly in her chest and she broke out into cold sweat.

She suddenly felt someone put a hand on her shoulder, causing her to flinch. Haruka glanced over to see Hanji who gave her a reassuring smile. She watched as Hanji calmly walked over to the unmoving person and stood beside them.

"Hey, you should try to be a little more careful when other people are walking around. Especially since you almost knocked out an outsider." Hanji said with a soft smile.

Hanji turned in the direction of where the other combatant flew off and cupped a hand on the side of her mouth. "Same goes to you! Be more aware of your surroundings!"

Haruka nearly jumped when the person let out an annoyed groan. Before she knew it, the person who was seemingly knocked out moments ago sat up and rubbed their head, cursing under their breath.

Now that she was close enough to see, Haruka saw that the person was a young man that seemed to be around the same age as her. He had short, messy pink hair with thick-framed glasses over reddish brown eyes. Haruka also noticed a couple piercings on his left ear and that he was the one wearing the jacket with a hooded pullover underneath.

He pulled himself up from the pile of rubble he was in and craned his neck to the side, cracking it. He flicked his eyes over to Haruka before quickly looking away with a deep frown. Haruka suddenly realized that while he looked rather banged up and his clothes were torn in several places, he wasn't bleeding or didn't seem to be suffering from any broken bones.

Haruka's thoughts paused. How was that even possible? He had went flying at an incredible speed and crashed into a building. How was it possible he didn't have any severe injuries? How was he able to just stand up and walk around as if nothing had happened?

"How…?" Haruka said under her breath, catching Natsume and Hanji's attention. "How is he not severely injured...?"

Natsume opened his mouth to say something but immediately closed it. He glanced over at Hanji, silently asking for help. Hanji let out a sigh and rubbed the back of her head.

"Well this is problem. Why don't you two come to my place to have some tea?"

* * *

Hanji poured a couple cups of tea and placed them in front of Natsume and Haruka. They were currently sitting at a low, sit-down table in Hanji's living room. Though Haruka wouldn't exactly call it a "living room," considering the state it was in. Papers were strewn all over the floor and piles of random objects stacked on top of each other lining the walls.

"Aha, sorry about the mess. But I never find any time to clean." Hanji said with a laugh as she sat down on the other side of the table.

"Or lazy." Natsume grumbled as he took a sip of tea.

However, he immediately winced and quickly pulled back the cup from his lips while muttering "bitter" under his breath.

"Sorry about earlier. Those two have always been the most rambunctious out of everyone here." Hanji said in a well-humored tone.

"Speaking of those two, where are they?" Natsume asked, crossing his arms.

"I told them to help fix up what they broke since their ranks won't help pay for the damages," Hanji said. "Besides, I'm sure they can benefit from doing some manual labor."

"I can't argue with that," Natsume muttered.

"Ah, I don't think we've had proper introductions yet," Hanji said as she extended a hand towards Haruka. "I'm Hanji Zoe. Pleased to make your acquaintance."

"I'm Haruka Nanami. It's nice to meet you." Haruka replied as she took Hanji's hand and shook it gently.

"And I'm already aware of who you are, Natsume." Hanji said as she looked over at Natsume.

Natsume narrowed his eyes, trying to fight against the impulse to roll his eyes. "Likewise."

Hanji chuckled before she turned her gaze back over to Haruka. "Now that the introductions are out of the way, I'm sure you have a bunch of questions about what you just witnessed."

Haruka hesitantly nodded. So many questions were whirling around in her head that she had no idea where to start. Thankfully, Haruka didn't have long to brood over things before Hanji started speaking.

"Are you familiar with the Chinese Zodiac?"

Haruka blinked. "The yearly cycle represented by the twelve animals?"

"Hanji!" Natsume said, raising his voice. "Why are you telling her this?"

"It's fine. She's already seen it anyways," Hanji said while waving a hand dismissively in front of her.

Natsume gritted his teeth but made no further comment. Haruka glanced anxiously between the two, unsure of what to make of the situation. Hanji cleared her throat, catching back Haruka's attention. When Haruka looked back at Hanji, she was surprised by how serious her expression was.

"What would you think if I told you that we hold the spirits of the twelve animals of the Chinese Zodiac within us?"

All thoughts Haruka were immediately put on hold. Did she say that animal spirits were inside them?

"What...do you mean by that?" Haruka asked slowly.

Hanji shrugged, a carefree smile making its way back onto her face. "Exactly what it sounds. Twelve families have been cursed to each bear a host of one of the twelve animals for unknown reasons. For the sake of keeping it a secret, all of us are forced to live in this small little world of ours whether we're aware of the reason or not."

That explained the amount of security this place had. It must have been done to keep a close watch over all the Zodiac hosts.

"This gated community also upholds a ranking system. Whoever bears a spirit of one of the Zodiac animals are blessed with special abilities. Because of this, those who are hosts are expected to use them in battle against each other for higher ranks, which affect the living conditions of their respective families. The higher the rank, the better off you are. Which is why the two earlier were fighting."

Haruka glanced down at her cup. That was a lot of information to take in. Not only did these people have animal spirits inside them, but they supposedly had supernatural powers and were forced to fight each other for ranks. What kind of place was this?!

"The battles however never put anyone in serious harm though, despite the use of some pretty dangerous weapons." Hanji added.

Haruka looked back up at her in surprise. "How is that possible?"

"Even I can't fully understand it," Hanji said, a thoughtful expression crossing her face. "I guess you can call it 'Divine Protection' in a way.

"Considering the battles are mostly done using the energy and power coming from the Zodiac spirits, it's almost as if the battles are fought on a spiritual battlefield. In which case it prevents any real physical harm done to the host's body. Even when they smash into buildings or crash into the ground, I believe the Zodiac spirits do something to buffer the damage. So while it doesn't hurt per se when they get hit, the force of the impact is still there and drains our body's energy.

"Despite the battles being on a different plane of existence, they still have to exert energy and once that energy is exhausted, the battle is over. So in a way, it's almost like-"

"Hanji," Natsume cut in and motioned towards Haruka with his head. "I think you lost her."

Haruka was staring hard at the table, seemingly trying to process everything that was said.

"Oh, ahaha! Looks like I started to ramble, oops!" Hanji laughed as Natsume let out an annoyed groan.

While Haruka was able to grasp the basics of the whole Zodiac concept, she was at a complete loss when Hanji started going into more depth about the reasonings behind it. While it sounded outrageous, she couldn't deny it considering she witnessed someone crashing into a house with almost no injuries first hand. Not to mention she did see someone with animal-like characteristics earlier too. Who exactly were these people?

"Haruka."

Haruka was pulled out of her thoughts and back into the present upon hearing her name. Hanji smiled at her and held a finger up to her lips as to emphasize her point.

"This is a pretty big secret of ours, so it'd be best to keep quiet about this."

"Could you not act so flippant about this topic?" Natsume said in mild annoyance.

"What? I'm being completely serious."

To have such an intense secret thrown at her so suddenly. It seemed like an awful lot of responsibility to be entrusted to her. Haruka wasn't sure what to make of the situation. After all, she was just trying to find a place to live and now all of this happened…

However, while she may not know what may happen next, if they were entrusting her with such an important secret, she will make sure to keep it. It was the least she could do after the inconvenience.

"Don't worry! I promise I won't tell anyone of this place's secret." Haruka said in the most serious expression she could muster.

Hanji smiled widely. "Good to hear."

Haruka relaxed a little. However, there were questions that still nagged at her. Why would a place like this exist? How did these people get here? Though, she was sure that she wouldn't be getting these answers any time soon. Especially since she wasn't even a part of the gated community.

"May I ask you something?" Haruka said as Hanji leaned back, awaiting her question. "If you live here, does that mean… you're part of the Zodiac?"

Hanji grinned. "Yup! One of the twelve Zodiac hosts in the flesh! Though I guess I'm not the first one you've met today."

Haruka probably could have guessed considering she was the one who swept her out of danger's way. She glanced over at Natsume, causing him to raise his eyebrows curiously and cock his head to the side. Haruka wondered what his ties to this place was. It was obvious he knew what kind of place this was prior to this visit considering his reactions. Could it be that he was actually a-

"No, I'm not part of the Zodiac." Natsume suddenly replied in an almost offended tone.

Was he suddenly a mind reader?!

"How did you..?!"

"Your expression said it all," Natsume said, his eyes flicking down at the table. "One of my older brothers lives here."

Haruka's eyes widened in shock. She should have pieced that together as soon as Hanji mentioned that members of the Zodiac lived in the fenced off section of the gated community. The more she thought about it, the more it made sense as to why there was always one Asahina brother missing at all the get togethers their families had. It should have also tipped her off that they literally went to his living quarters earlier as well. After everything that happened, she wasn't exactly thinking clearly.

"Anyways, now that we've addressed the elephant in the room, what were you guys doing here in the first place?" Hanji asked.

"I was just here to drop some things off. We weren't planning on staying long." Natsume replied.

"We were in the middle of trying to find a place for me to live before the new school year started. Sorry that I caused you problems by coming here." Haruka said with an apologetic bow.

"You're trying to find a place to live around here?" Hanji asked, her eyebrows raising in interest.

Haruka nodded. "I decided to go to high school in the area and was hoping to find an apartment close by but I haven't decided on one yet."

Truthfully, Haruka wasn't sure if she'd be able to settle on a place anytime soon. Would she ever be comfortable living in a place all on her own? The thought honestly scared her.

Hanji tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Hmm… Why not live here then?"

The room went silent as Haruka and Natsume stared at her incredulously.

"E-Excuse me?" Haruka stammered as Natsume's face paled.

"Why not live here in the Zodiac estate? I have a spare room and if I clean up the place a little, it'll be fine, right?" Hanji said with an excited smile.

"That's not the main problem…" Natsume said.

"Aw, it wouldn't be that bad. Besides, it's not like we have fights every single day."

"Even if safety wasn't an issue, this place would never allow someone who wasn't even part of the community to live here." Natsume argued.

"I'm sure I could pull a few strings to ensure her stay here." Hanji said, not deterred at all from Natsume's previous statement.

The more they argued, the more Haruka felt out of place. Maybe it would be best if she just left.

"Then how about this?" Hanji said, raising her index finger. "I can probably make it so you can stay for about a year, giving you more time to decide and look for another place afterwards. As for rent, the gated community pays for my living space, so you won't need to worry about it. You won't find a better deal than this."

Haruka blinked in surprise. Would this really be okay? Haruka thought. She didn't even know this person or the other people living in the area and she was being invited to stay with them. Not to mention that random fights would break out between the members of the Zodiac from time to time.

On the other hand, this way she wouldn't be living alone. It would also be a great opportunity to meet new people, no matter how eccentric her new neighbors might be.

"I don't like the idea of her living here," Natsume said, his expression firm. "I think it would be best for us to keep looking at more apartments later-"

"Natsume." Hanji suddenly cut in.

Natsume paused and both he and Haruka were surprised by the stern look Hanji was giving him. While she didn't look angry, it was obvious she was tired of the constant back and forths in their arguments. Her eyes were brimming with a certain strength yet pleading that Haruka didn't quite understand.

"Let Haruka think and answer for herself." Hanji said, silencing Natsume's further complaints.

All eyes were now on Haruka, awaiting her answer. She could feel her anxiety rise being the center of attention. But whether she was comfortable or not, she had to give an answer.

She didn't want to inconvenience Hanji and the rest of the people living here, but the deal did seem very compelling. Especially since it would give her more time to make up her mind on where to live for the rest of her time attending high school. It would probably also be easier for her to ease into this new environment if there were others she could talk to were around.

She glanced over at Natsume. He looked apprehensive and had a look that seemed to plead for her to not agree to this. While she understood his concern, this may be a good opportunity in its own way.

"I…" Haruka said carefully before looking up at Hanji with a confident expression. "I'll take you up on your offer to live here. Thank you for having me."

"Great!" Hanji said excitedly as she reached over and took Haruka's hands into hers. "It's a pleasure to have you."

Natsume's shoulders drooped a little before he ran a hand through his hair.

"Aw, it'll be fine, Natsume. I promise I'll keep her out of harm's way." Hanji said, trying to be reassuring. But judging from Natsume's expression he wasn't convinced.

Haruka gave Natsume a sympathetic smile. She greatly appreciated his help today and was grateful to Natsume for taking the time to help search for a place. In a way, she felt as if she was disregarding his efforts by choosing to live here. But in the end, she had made her decision.

She reached over and tugged the fabric of his sleeve. Natsume glanced over at her with a weary expression.

"I'm sorry, Natsume-san. But I do really want to try living here. It'll only be for a year." Haruka said, trying to reassure him that she would be fine.

Natsume breathed deeply through his nostrils before giving Haruka a small smile. He reached up and ruffled her hair like he always does, causing her to squeak in surprise.

"If that's what you decided, I will respect it," Natsume said. "Just try to stay out of trouble."

Haruka smiled brightly up at him and bowed once again to Hanji. "Thank you so much for everything, Zoe-san."

"No need to be so formal. Just call me Hanji," Hanji said as she waved a hand in front of her. "I'll make the arrangements so just let me know when you plan to move in."

"Okay!" Haruka said excitedly.

While Haruka chatted happily with Natsume, Hanji turned her gaze up towards the ceiling. She narrowed her eyes and frowned. However, when Haruka turned back towards her, Hanji wore a happy-go-lucky smile as if her expression had not changed at all. As the three talked, a light footstep on the roof went unnoticed.

* * *

The sun had already set over the horizon and the last remnants of the winter turned the air cold. Haruka and Natsume bid Hanji farewell as they walked out the door and towards the parking lot. Hanji waved back with a large grin on her face.

When the two were out of sight, Hanji stretched her arms over her head. Several parts in her shoulders cracked due to how stiff she was before she lowered her arms back down and sighed. She closed the sliding door behind her and set off down a dirt road that lead deeper into the estate. As she walked, she could feel several people's stares boring down on her despite seeing no one being around. She chuckled, thinking to herself how unsubtle they were being.

Word always seems to travel fast here. Sometimes it felt impossible to keep a secret considering there were way too many eyes and ears all over the place.

The dirt road eventually became pavement as she came upon what seemed to be a nicely built mansion. Hanji didn't even pause as she allowed herself through the front door. She walked up a flight of stairs and down a long hallway that was lined with several expensive looking items such as vases and paintings. The floorboards underneath the soft carpet squeaked in a select few areas until Hanji stopped in front of a nicely furnished door. She knocked a couple times before letting herself in without waiting for someone to answer. The door creaked as she opened it, revealing a well-organized and tidy office.

There were several bookshelves lining the walls with a work desk set near the back with Japanese flower decor sitting on top. A large window overlooking the outside took up nearly the entire left side of the office. A young man with short, spiky hair sat in a comfortable chair next to the window with a one-legged side table next to him. There was a cup of freshly brewed tea sitting on the table, the hot air visibly rising from cup.

The young man was currently leaning against his knuckles that were propped up on the armrest as he gazed disinterestedly out the window.

"I heard there was an issue earlier."

Hanji let out a sigh but her smile remained as she closed the door behind her.

"Nothing gets past you, Mr. Sees All. But that's what I'm here to talk to you about."

The young man finally turned to face her with a look of interest in his heterochromatic eyes. "Oh? Tell me then."


	3. Back-to-Back Interaction

**_Chapter 3: Back-to-Back Interaction  
_**

Natsume let out a grunt as he jerked forward, setting down several boxes stacked on top of each on the floor. The room was now full of move-in boxes stacked on top of one another and Natsume wondered why girls always had so many things.

Nearly a month had passed since he and Haruka last came to the Zodiac estate, and now they were moving Haruka into Hanji's place. He took out his phone and checked to see if anyone had messaged him. There was a notification for one new message with the name "Kana-nii" beside it. Before he could read it however, Haruka came in carrying a couple more boxes.

"Is that everything?" Natsume asked as he slipped his phone back into his pocket.

Haruka set down the boxes she was holding and nodded. "Should be. Thank you for helping me move in."

Natsume gave her a small smile. "And you're sure about moving in here?"

Before Haruka could answer, the door opened and Hanji waltzed in. "I told you not to worry,"

She came over and pat Haruka on the shoulder. "I promise you she'll be fine."

"You also promised you'd clean up your place and yet…" Natsume trailed off, staring out towards the hallway and into the living room.

The living room was still a complete disaster, just like how it was when they first came or maybe even worse. Natsume could have sworn that the book towers had gotten even taller since last time and there seemed to be even more loose papers and random trash lying around.

"Ah… oh yeah." Hanji laughed while rubbing the back of her head.

Natsume ran a hand through his hair in frustration. There was just no winning with this woman.

"This is what I decided to do and I will see it through to the end." Haruka said with a confident gaze.

Her eyes were brimming with something that Natsume had not seen in her for a while. He did promise that he'd respect her choice. All he could do now was be supportive in any way that he could.

He went over to Haruka, placed a hand on top of her head, then looked over at Hanji.

"If Haruka ever gets hurt because of this Zodiac thing I will be holding you personally responsible." Natsume said, glaring hard at Hanji.

His glare however did not seem to faze Hanji as she stared back with a confident smile. "I'll take full responsibility for her safety. But I assure you, it won't come to that."

Natsume let out a huff before turning his gaze back to Haruka. "Well, if this is it, I have to head back to work."

He paused briefly before he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small key.

"I made a spare key to my apartment in case of an emergency. But feel free to drop by anytime even if you just want to talk." Natsume said.

Haruka cupped her hands and Natsume dropped the key into her hands. She looked at it in surprise before smiling brightly and thanking him once again.

While Natsume knew he was being a bit overprotective, he couldn't help it. They'd known each other for years and Natsume always saw her as the little sister he never had. Especially since she was kind of oblivious to certain things.

The two exchanged farewells as Natsume gave a simple wave as he walked out the door. On his way to his car, he suddenly remembered something. Turning around, he quickly jogged back towards the more inward area of the estate.

* * *

Haruka took a few steps back to take the whole view of her new room in. The room was small but big enough for Haruka to be comfortable. The walls were a nice pale yellow color with interesting patterns scattered across it. Her bed was neatly made with a large green comforter on top and a small drawer with a lamp on top beside it. A small desk laid against the other side of the room with a few small shelves around it. There was a nicely sized window that was well placed on the opposite wall to the door, filling the room with natural light.

While she had yet to unpack anything, the sight still gave her a sense of the start of a new beginning. She shook her head at how cheesy that thought was but a smile still crept onto her face. Glancing over to the side, she spotted her keyboard lying propped up against the wall.

She walked over to it and gently set it down on the floor. She brushed her fingers over the smooth surface of the keys, giving her a sense of ease and comfort. Music was always something Haruka loved ever since she was little. It always filled the usually empty house with something warm and inviting.

Before she could create a single note, however, Hanji came back into the room, placing one hand on the doorframe.

"After you unpack a little, why don't I show you around the estate?" Hanji offered.

"That would be great, thank you!" Haruka said enthusiastically.

She quickly put the keyboard back over to the side for another time as she started rifling through the other boxes.

After a couple hours, Haruka was able to unpack a good portion of her things. Deciding to call it a day for unpacking, Haruka dusted off her hands and went to go look for Hanji.

She did want to take a look around the estate to get a better grasp of the area. Not to mention she might be able to meet more of the others living here. Though she had to admit that the idea was a little intimidating. Especially since these people were out of the ordinary if she had anything to go by when she first visited.

She quickly crossed the hall over to Hanji's room only to find it a complete mess. Though it really shouldn't have surprised her considering the state of the living room. But Hanji's room seemed like a tornado had passed through it with so many things scattered all over the place. It was in an even worse condition than the other room. Haruka was somewhat relieved in not having to share a room with her.

Hanji was sitting at her desk with several towers of paper stacked around her. She seemed to be deep in thought while furiously writing something.

"Um, Hanji-san?" Haruka called out.

Hanji's head snapped up and looked over towards the doorway at Haruka.

"Ah, are you done unpacking?"

Haruka nodded. "For now anyways. I'll unpack more tomorrow."

Hanji quickly finished off what was left of what she was writing and stood up from her seat. "All right, let the tour begin!"

* * *

As Hanji lead Haruka deeper into the Zodiac estate, a thought crossed Haruka's mind.

"Hanji-san."

Hanji glanced over at her curiously. "Hm?"

"I don't think you told me which Zodiac animal you were." Haruka said.

"Ah, right. I'm the boar," Hanji said enthusiastically. "And dead last in the rankings at twelfth."

That explained why Hanji's place looked a bit less furnished and run down than most of the other dwellings in the area.

"It must be difficult being at the bottom of the rankings." Haruka commented as Hanji just laughed.

"To be completely honest, I just don't care too much about the ranking system. Besides, I think it's best to just let the youngsters have at it."

"Youngsters?" Haruka repeated a little confused.

"Well I am twenty nine." Hanji answered nonchalantly.

Haruka's eyes widened in surprise. To Haruka, Hanji looked more like she was in her early twenties. However, what surprised Haruka more was that she didn't actively take part in the ranking battles and didn't seem too bothered by the fact she was at the very bottom. Haruka didn't know anything about the battles or the regulations, but she figured they were a lot more important than how Hanji was making them out to be.

"In any case," Hanji said, interrupting Haruka's thoughts. "This area here houses the members at the bottom half of the Zodiac.

"And depending on their ranks, the living quarters will get refurbished or left untouched as you can see. Rankings also decide on general welfare and living conditions for relatives outside the estate. The higher the rank, the better off your relatives in the rest of the gated community are."

From what Haruka could see, all the houses in the area were generally nice looking. Though she noticed that a couple had some wear marks on the windows and walls, giving them a more groady look. At least none of them looked ratty and falling apart. Even Hanji's place was in proper living conditions despite being at the bottom of the rankings. Though for a gated community, they had to have some propriety, Haruka supposed. However, there was something that was bothering her.

"I noticed this the first time I came here, but why are there hardly anyone around?" Haruka asked.

She had noticed this during her first visit as well. However, despite not seeing anyone, she felt an unsettling feeling of being watched. Though the feeling wasn't quite as intense as when she first visited.

"Well as you know it can get kind of dangerous around here with all the fighting so most tend to stear clear of going outside," Hanji explained. "The Zodiac members also have a tendency to stay more on the down low and don't show up that often unless there's a good reason."

Haruka giggled. "You make it sound like you're all rare beasts."

In a sense, however she guessed they were.

"Exactly!" Hanji said enthusiastically while turning to face Haruka and pointed at her with both hands. "That's precisely the reason why I want to study them more! I mean, think about it. What kind of answers could I find if I could just study and experiment on one of them?"

Haruka reared back a little as an excited spark ignited in Hanji's eyes and a creepy smile spread across her face. What kind of experiments did Hanji even have in mind?

After Hanji calmed down a little, she walked the two of them over to the other side of the estate. While the Zodiac estate was only a small portion of the gated community, Haruka had to admit it was still a pretty big area. Most of the ground was covered in nicely trimmed grass with several dirt pathways that led up to each of the houses and trees covered the perimeter, making it seem like the gated walls weren't even there. Haruka wondered if the Zodiac members felt more at ease surrounded by nature like this.

Hanji paused motioned towards to several houses behind her.

"And this here are where the upper half of the Zodiac members live. You probably won't see them much since a bunch of them are high ranks and generally keep to themselves. And while the lower ranks tend to shuffle around a lot in rankings, the higher ranks generally stay stagnant this generation. Though I think it's mostly because most of the higher ranks are older." Hanji explained with a shrug.

Haruka looked around and was shocked to find that all of the houses were exceptionally nicer than the ones of the lower half of the Zodiac living quarters. Though what stood out to Haruka the most was the mansion-like building near the back. The other houses seemed to make a pathway towards it. Who even lived there?

"You can say most of these places house the stuffy rich people in the Zodiac." Hanji said with a smirk as Haruka looked at her with a puzzled expression.

"Now, now, you really shouldn't generalize like that, Hanji-san."

Hanji and Haruka glanced over to see a tall man wearing ceremonial Japanese robes walking over to them. He had blond hair that were spiky on the sides with a portion in the back being much longer and falling past his shoulders. His bangs parted down the middle that lined his face. He had striking hazel eyes that had an easygoing lull to them and a couple earrings on his left ear.

"Ooh, well if it isn't your lucky day, Haruka. You get to see an old stuffy high ranking Zodiac in the flesh. Ranked number three and the tiger of the Zodiac!" Hanji declared dramatically as she motioned a hand towards him.

"Exactly what do you mean by "old"? You're the oldest one out of all of us." The man shot back with a well humored smile, causing Hanji to make a face.

The man certainly seemed to know his way with words to even make Hanji react. Though it mildly surprised Haruka that someone of such high ranking would be showing himself to her.

He turned his attention back onto Haruka and went over to her side, taking her hand into his.

"So we finally meet, Haruka Nanami."

Haruka blinked. How did this man know her name already? She's never seen him before as far she could recall. However, she was interrupted mid thought when the man leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on the back of her hand. Haruka's face immediately lit up as red as a tomato while Hanji whistled in amusement behind her.

"I've heard quite a bit about you," The man said with a wink. "Kaname Asahina, it's a pleasure to meet you."

Haruka's eyes widened in realization, killing off her initial embarrassment. This was the Asahina brother she had never met. The one that Natsume mentioned was actually a Zodiac member and was living here the entire time.

There were so many things she wanted to talk to him about. However, before she could say anything, Kaname leaned in close to her.

"Do you know what else would be a great pleasure?" Kaname suddenly asked as Haruka looked at him curiously. "If we-"

"Hey, perv! Wataa!"

Hanji quickly grabbed Haruka's hand and twirled her to the side as someone came hurtling towards them and slamming the back of their foot down on Kaname's head. Kaname hit the ground face first with a crash as the person who had landed the blow jumped back a couple feet. Haruka covered her mouth with her hands in shock as Kaname lay unmoving on the ground.

"Chi-e~, could you please not endanger people who aren't part of the Zodiac again?" Hanji called causing the person referred to as Chie to stiffen.

"I-I was just trying to keep this guy from sexually harassing her, that's all!" Chie said trying to defend herself.

The girl seemed to be around Haruka's age and wore a high collared, light green athletic jacket with several decorative pins and a black and white checkered miniskirt. She had short, light brown, bowl-shaped hair and similarly colored eyes. She was short in stature, but from the looks of it she packed a pretty powerful kick.

Before Haruka could say something about the fact Kaname was lying facedown, he braced his arms on the ground to his sides.

"Now that's just rude," Kaname said as he pushed himself off the ground. "I was just saying hello."

Chie narrowed her eyes at him in suspicion as Kaname got back to his feet and dusted off his robes.

That was right. Haruka recalled how a similar event took place nearly a month ago.

"It's no use, Chie," a voice suddenly said as a familiar pink-haired male came up and stood beside Haruka. "There's no helping that idiot."

Haruka looked up at him in surprise as he glanced down at her. It was the guy that nearly crashed into her!

"Oh, it's you again."

Haruka blinked, not knowing how to take that statement.

"Ah, I don't think you all have had a proper introduction yet," Hanji said, placing a hand on Haruka's shoulder and gestured towards the young man next to her with the other. "This here is Shiho Kimizuki."

"I-it's nice to meet you." Haruka said with a polite bow as Kimizuki muttered a disinterested "yeah."

Haruka felt a little uncomfortable from Kimizuki's lack of responses and fell into an awkward silence.

His gaze eventually fell on Kaname. However, his eyes shifted to the side without any change to his expression when Kaname looked back at him.

"You'll have to excuse him, he's never learned any manners," Chie said while ignoring the dirty look Kimizuki was giving her as she walked over to Haruka. "I'm Chie Satonaka, nice to meet you."

Haruka reciprocated the greeting and smiled. She had only moved in today and was surprised to meet so many people already.

Chie put her hands together in an apologetic manner and bowed her head. "I also want to apologize for getting you mixed up in this mess of ours."

"What are you talking about…?" Haruka started but Chie cut her off.

"We were the ones kind of responsible for nearly crashing into you." Chie said with a nervous smile as she rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment.

So she was the other one in that fight during her first visit.

Chie turned to Kimizuki. "You apologize too."

Kimizuki rolled his eyes and Chie lightly elbowed him in the chest in response. He grunted and winced slightly in pain.

"...Sorry." Kimizuki replied monotonously.

"You could at least try to sound apologetic," Chie muttered. "Sheesh, you're making me look bad."

"Ah, it's fine, really. I mean, Hanji-san was able to get me out of the way in time, so..." Haruka said.

"Why don't both of you try apologizing to me? Considering it was my porch you guys wrecked," Kaname said as both shot him annoyed looks.

Kaname let out a sigh before turning to Harka and flashing her a charming smile.

"I have to take care of a few things so I need to be going. But we should get together and get to know each other better. I have a lot of things I'd like to talk to you about."

"Um, o-okay…" Haruka said, feeling a little uncomfortable by his tone.

"I'll see you later, Haruka-chan."

Kaname gave her a wink before walking off down one of the dirt paths as Chie and Kimizuki watched him leave with dirty looks while Hanji waved.

Kaname was definitely a lot different from what Haruka had expected. Though she did pick up on a couple similarities between him and a few of his brothers. He came in and out so fast that Haruka really didn't have a chance to talk to him at all. But she guessed she would have another time to talk to him since they'll be living in the same area for a year.

"Anyways," Chie said, turning back to Haruka. "I'll treat you to some steak as an apology and a welcome."

"Oh, you don't have to do that, really!" Haruka said frantically but Chie continued to insist.

As the two went back and forth, Kimizuki went over to Hanji's side.

"Hey, how did she even get permission to stay here? I mean, this is the Zodiac estate. No outsider should even be allowed to know what goes on in here. Even less be able to live here." Kimizuki asked quietly.

"As long as you say the right things, everything will naturally work out in your favor." Hanji replied nonchalantly.

Kimizuki quirked an eyebrow before narrowing his gaze. "Things don't work that way. Especially when it comes to that guy. He's not the most agreeable person."

Hanji shrugged, causing Kimizuki to groan in annoyance.

"Hey, Shiho-kun!" Chie called over. "Why don't you join us for some steak!"

Before Kimizuki could heave another groan, Hanji smacked him on the back, causing him to stumble forward a couple steps. Kimizuki caught himself and looked over at Hanji is a mix of confusion and annoyance.

"Why not go? You could afford to act like an actual teenager from time to time." Hanji said with a sympathetic smile.

Kimizuki's eyes widened in surprise before a softer expression came over his face. His shoulders sagged a little and a small, weary sigh escaped his lips.

"...Fine."

* * *

Kimizuki's eye twitched in annoyance. The three of them were currently sitting at a table in the middle of a nearby mall's food court with two plates of nicely cooked beef steak in front of Haruka and Chie. It was fairly busy today with many people chatting idly with each other and walking in and out of different stores.

"I wouldn't have come if I'd known you were going to make me pay for your stupid steak." Kimizuki grumbled.

"You really didn't need to pay for my share. I'm sorry if it's troubled you." Haruka said with a guilty expression.

She'd told Chie that they didn't need to take her out. But Chie had greatly insisted and Haruka wondered if she were just a big pushover. Considering how Hanji got her the same way... She sighed at the thought.

Kimizuki's frown was replaced with a look of slight panic. "N-No, I didn't mean-"

"Aw, don't apologize to him. He needs to learn some courtesy," Chie said before taking a large bite of her steak and glanced over at Kimizuki. "Think of this as your actual apology for nearly bowling her over."

"Then why am I treating you too?!"

Haruka watched as the two went back and forth with Chie yelling at Kimizuki about him breaking her "Trial of the Dragon" DVD. She giggled in awkward amusement at the two's relationship. Though that was something that confused her. Though they were bickering, they seemed to be getting along a lot better as opposed to be at each other's throats like the first time she saw them.

"Can I ask you two something?" Haruka asked and the two immediately stopped their bickering and looked over at her. "What are you two's relationship?"

Chie smirked and leaned back in her chair with crossed arms. "Hm, hm. Isn't it obvious? We're ultimate rivals!"

"Though it's completely one-sided." Kimizuki shot back as Chie shot him an annoyed look.

"So you're okay hanging out with each other even though you fight?" Haruka asked curiously.

"Haven't you heard the term, 'keep your friends close and your enemies closer?'" Chie said.

"Anyways, we only fight for ranking. Not for personal reasons against each other," Kimizuki explained before adding under his breath. "...for the most part."

Haruka looked at him questionably. What did he mean by that last sentence? However it seemed like he wasn't going to bother expanding as he glanced to the side without another word.

"Yeah," Chie said, catching Haruka's attention. "Think of it like sports. It's all just competition in the end and no hard feelings."

"Ah, I see." Haruka said as she looked down at her food.

On their walk over to the mall, Haruka found out that Kimizuki and Chie were the ram and the monkey of the Zodiac respectively. Not to mention that Kimizuki was ranked 7th and Chie placed at 8th. Haruka thought they seemed pretty strong from their first battle and expected them to be a little higher in the rankings. But she supposed there was a lot more to the ranking battles than just strength. Their world felt so foreign to her, but it was also pretty interesting.

She took a small bite of her meal and was surprised to find how rich with flavor it was. The meat was also very tender and cooked to perfection. Haruka wasn't the biggest fan of steak, but she had to admit this was pretty good. Chie however looked like she was having the time of her life digging into her steak as if she hadn't eaten in days. It was rather amazing.

A giggle escaped her when Kimizuki tried to take a piece but was fended off.

She had to wonder what kind of people the other Zodiac members were and if she'd be able to get along with them.

Well, she had the entire year to find out anyways.


	4. Absolutely Forbidden Trial

_**Chapter 4: Absolutely Forbidden Trial  
**_

Haruka let out an exasperated sigh when she came into the living room. She had only been living with Hanji for a couple days and the living room was still a complete disaster. All the random stuff that littered the ground made it hard for Haruka to walk around.

She nearly dropped the rice porridge she made when she tripped over one of Hanji's scattered books while crossing the room. Honestly, it was driving Haruka internally nuts. Especially since back at home everything was neat and organized. She talked to Natsume about it over the phone, though he was hardly surprised by it.

She ignored it for a little bit out of consideration for Hanji since she was the one who got her permission to stay here. However, it was becoming a hazard just walking around the room.

Hanji was sitting at the table with several papers scattered all over the table. When she saw Haruka's expression, she let out an amused chuckle.

"Ah, it can't be helped. I've been living on my own for years so-"

"Is it okay if I throw this out?" Haruka asked, pointing towards a seemingly large pile of garbage. She was even in the process of taking out a garbage bag.

Hanji shrieked in horror and scrambled over in front of it, saying something along the lines that those were important for her research. Though what kind of research it was even for, Haruka would never know.

"All right! All right! I'll clean the place up!" Hanji cried frantically.

She grabbed Haruka by the shoulders and ushered her towards the front door.

"W-what are you doing?!" Haruka said in confusion and bewilderment.

"I promise I'll clean up. But I need you to be out for a little bit," Hanji said when she had Haruka out on the front porch. "I do this for your own safety."

Before Haruka could say another word, Hanji waved several bills into Haruka's face.

"Why don't you go out and buy ingredients for dinner? That'll keep you busy while I'm cleaning," Hanji said with an apologetic smile. "We'll make dinner together to celebrate the clear living room!"

A small smile crept over Haruka's face as she nodded. Haruka took the money from Hanji as the older woman shouted an enthusiastic "good luck" before slamming the door closed. She hadn't even been living here that long and she was already kicked out of the house. Guess there wasn't much to do now but go to the store. At least Hanji was finally doing something about the mess.

Haruka let out yet another sigh before looking over at the view in front of her. Among the slightly run down buildings, the area was lined with trees with several cherry blossoms mixed in. It almost felt like she were living in a forest with how many trees and brush there was within the Zodiac estate. It made Haruka feel more at ease, reminding her of her time with her grandmother in the countryside. Who knew she would find such a place away from the city noise. It felt like such a blessing.

Her reverie was interrupted when she suddenly caught something moving in the corner of her eye.

She quickly looked over and spotted a blur of lavender disappear into the bushes with the sound of rustling leaves following. Haruka felt her heart jump a little as it pounded anxiously in her chest. She wondered briefly if it was some sort of animal. However, knowing what kind of place this was, it was highly likely it was someone from the Zodiac. Letting curiosity get the better of her, she slowly crept towards the bushes.

"Hey, Haruka-chan!"

Haruka flinched upon suddenly being called and turned to see Chie walking over to her. While she was distracted however, whatever was in the bushes used that opportunity to escape in a flash of movement.

Haruka felt a twinge of annoyance and disappointment but ultimately let it go since there was no point in chasing after whatever the thing was at this point. There was a whole year to figure out who or what it was anyways. She turned her attention back on Chie as the other girl cheerfully walked up to her.

"Huh? What's wrong?" Chie asked as she placed her hands in her sweatshirt's pockets.

"Eh? Nothing's wrong? Why do you ask?" Haruka responded a bit too quickly.

"You had this weird expression on your face."

Haruka quickly waved her hands in front of her with a frazzled smile. "Oh no, everything is fine, really. I just got kicked out of the house because Hanji-san is cleaning."

Chie couldn't help but snort at the comment. "Zoe-san? Cleaning? Good one!"

"N-No, it's true. She's cleaning out the living room right now and threw me out of the house. So she sent me to go get some groceries for dinner." Haruka said with a slight exasperation to her tone.

Hanji was just so random sometimes, always moving at her own pace. Haruka wondered if she'd ever be able to keep up with her. Though considering how much energy the older woman had, Haruka supposed it was probably not possible.

"I'm pretty sure she just kicked you out because she didn't want to hear you complain about her mess," Chie said with an empathetic smile. "I mean, she's been living like that for as long as I can remember and probably even longer."

Haruka briefly wondered if she should have been a bit more considerate towards Hanji. Maybe she should apologize later.

Chie came over and slung an arm around Haruka's shoulders, causing a small "oof" to come from her mouth.

"In any case, I'll come with you to the store."

"You're not busy?" Haruka asked.

"Nope, if anything, this place is way too stuffy. Let's go!" Chie said with an energetic fist pump as she started dragging Haruka towards the entrance gate.

Haruka stammered several half-hearted protests as Chie continued dragging her along. As they passed the gates, none of them noticed a figure with several bandages wrapped all over his body hidden in the trees, watching them with one visible eye.

"..."

* * *

Haruka walked down the produce aisle, looking amongst the selection as she tried to figure out what to cook for dinner. However, the trouble she was currently facing was she had no idea what Hanji even liked. A small frown spread over Haruka's face as she tried to make up her mind on what to make. She could always go with something simple considering all she's ever seen Hanji eat were cup noodles and store bought bread. It was a wonder how Hanji had so much energy without eating all that much.

Now that she thought about it, did Hanji even know how to cook? A worried expression crossed over Haruka's face as she began to ponder what to do. She didn't want the house to burn down only after a few days of living there. She'd have to tread carefully if they were cooking together. Maybe she would only let Hanji cut the vegetables or something. Though that in itself was also a cause for concern.

'There's no winning…' Haruka said mentally as she let out a sigh.

She took out her phone to text Natsume to ask about his opinion on the cooking situation. As she turned around, her eyes still on her phone, she accidentally bumped into a small boy. The boy stumbled back a few steps but managed to stay on his feet.

"Ah! I'm so sorry! I wasn't looking where I was going! Are you alright?" Haruka asked in concern as she bent down to his eye level.

The boy stared at her with curious face. After a moment however, he nodded and quickly ran off, probably to find his mother. Haruka blinked in confusion at the boy's rather aloof attitude, however decided not to worry about it too much.

Looking back at the direction the boy ran off to one final time, Haruka quickly hurried over to Chie who was staring intently at the meat in the frozen aisle. Seeing how serious Chie was being about meat, Haruka couldn't help but giggle.

"Satonaka-san, what do you think I should cook for dinner?" Haruka asked, hoping to get a couple of suggestions from her companion as Chie glanced over at her.

"Hmm," Chie said as she glanced up towards the ceiling for a moment. "You can never go wrong with steak."

Haruka's shoulders dropped a little in exasperation. Somehow she had a feeling that would be her answer.

Before Haruka could say another word, someone shouted, "MAIDEN OF LIGHT!"

Both Haruka and Chie flinched at the sudden shout as someone jumped over one of the aisle shelves, landing a couple feet away from them.

The person seemed to be young male with long blue-green hair. He wore a school uniform Haruka wasn't familiar that consisted of a blue jacket with lighter blue lining and black pants. He had several belts hanging around his hips and his upper left leg with a brown choker around his neck. There was also a large cross necklace hanging down over his chest. However, what stood out the most was the fact his left arm, his chest and face were all covered in bandages. Not to mention that the bandages over his chest seemed to be stained in deep red, causing panic to set in Haruka.

"Y-You're bleeding!" Haruka cried, though the young man didn't seem to be at all concerned about it.

"What the hell, Higure?! I thought I told you to not make a scene in public!" Chie shouted, glaring daggers at the newcomer.

Looking around, Haruka noticed that nearly all of the store shoppers were looking at them in a mixture of alarm and curiosity. There were murmurings of possibly calling the police which made Haruka even more anxious.

The person clutched their chest dramatically. "My crimson chest... it cries out in agony…"

"T-The hospital! We need to get him to a hospital!" Haruka cried in a panic.

However, before she could take out her cell phone, the person reached up and grabbed her wrist. Haruka flinched at the sudden contact as the young man looked up at her with determination burning through his uncovered eye.

"Maiden of Light, I wish to converse with you under the veil of shadows, away from the gazes of Emberi."

Haruka paused. "What?"

She didn't have time to react when the young man suddenly made a dash out of the grocery store, pulling her along with him. Haruka let out a yelp of surprise as she was forcefully rushed out of the store with Chie yelling something after them.

As she was pulled along down the sidewalk, several questions went through Haruka's mind such as: Where was he taking her? Who was this guy? What was he even talking about?

The young man had both of them run for a couple blocks and Haruka felt like she was slowly running out of breath. Her legs were starting to get wobbly and were slowly becoming like rubber. However, it didn't seem like the young man pulling her was going to stop any time soon.

"W-Wai… H-Hold on!" Haruka cried. She wasn't sure how long she was going to last.

The young man made a sharp turn into a nearby alleyway and came to a sudden halt, causing Haruka to crash into his back. She stumbled back a few steps before bending down and bracing herself against her legs as she desperately tried to catch her breath. It were times like these that she wished she were better at P.E. or at least had better stamina.

"We must tread carefully, for a dark presence looms in the Haven of Sustenance," The young man said as he glanced around the corner of the alleyway. "Not only there, but in the confined Walls of Maria as well. Many spies and dark forces lurk within those walls. It is not safe to speak without restraint."

Haruka looked at him incredulously and tilted her head in confusion. "Um… excuse me?"

The young man whirled back around dramatically and faced Haruka with an intense gaze, causing her to flinch.

"Do you not sense this time of urgency, oh great Maiden of Light? You've been brought to the Walls of Maria by the Gods of Chaos, which means… The Time of Judgement is upon us."

Haruka was completely lost. Nothing this guy was saying made any sense to her. Maiden of Light? Walls of Maria?

"We have but little time. You must decide! Will you help cleanse the demons that threaten to overtake the Chosen- AGH!"

With a cry of pain, the young man fell to his knees while clutching his chest. Haruka came forward to try and help him, but he immediately raised a hand to stop her.

"Do not come any closer!"

"But you're-!"

Before Haruka could finish her sentence, a shadow loomed over them and she quickly turned to see Chie glaring down at Anghel while cracking her knuckles.

"Get ready to be in a lot more pain…" Chie growled in annoyance.

"Satonaka-san, hold on-"

Before Haruka could finish however, Chie darted forward, her intentions clear. Without thinking, Haruka quickly got in front of Anghel while putting up her hands in front of her in a "please stop" fashion. Chie skidded to a halt, causing Haruka to squeeze her eyes shut to brace herself for possible impact.

Realizing nothing had happened, Haruka cracked an eye open to see Chie frowning at her.

"Move, this guy needs to be taught a lesson."

"I'm sure we can work this out. He didn't mean any harm." Haruka pleaded.

Chie opened her mouth to refute but instead groaned in frustration and scratched irritably at her scalp.

"Fine… I'll let him off just this once."

Haruka breathed a sigh of relief. Chie walked past her and placed a hand on Anghel's shoulder, forcing him back up to his feet. Anghel shrieked several complaints about being in pain but eventually calmed down when Haruka had to grab Chie around the waist when the latter tried to attack him again.

"If you hadn't guessed, this guy is also part of the Zodiac." Chie grumbled in annoyance.

Haruka giggled with an exasperated sigh. "I figured as much."

"I am Anghel Higure, the Fallen Servant of God, stained with the blood of sin!" Anghel announced dramatically, seemingly recovered from his earlier episode.

Haruka smiled and politely introduced herself as well. She then glanced over at Chie with a confused expression, silently pleading for answers. Noticing her questioning gaze, Chie merely shrugged.

"Don't worry too much about him, he always talks crazy like that."

"B-But he's bleeding… And the bandages…" Haruka said, clearly still not understanding.

"He's always hurting himself because of his hobbies. It's nothing new," Chie said dismissively while waving a hand for good measure.

How could she say something like that so nonchalantly?

"I'm pretty sure it's fake blood anyways. I mean, he basically lives in his own world like someone with eighth grade syndrome."

Haruka glanced back over and Anghel and was taken aback to find him staring intently at them.

"I-Is there something wrong?"

Anghel didn't answer at first. After a moment, he suddenly smirked.

"I challenge thee, Chariot of the Midnight Truth! Let us cross blades on these promised grounds! And this time I shall be the victor!" Anghel declared as he pointed at Chie.

"Are you kidding me?" Chie said with a less than amused expression.

Anghel held out his hand and a large broadsword suddenly appeared in front of him. The sword had a golden handle with pointed edges and had red markings along the blade. Anghel reached out and grabbed it and dramatically swung it in several directions before pointing it at Chie.

"Come!" Anghel demanded.

"Have you lost what little sanity you had left? We're not supposed to fight outside the estate! Put that away before someone sees!" Chie shouted in a mixture of bewilderment and annoyance.

Haruka took a step back in shock. Where did that giant sword even come from?!

"Hah!" Anghel cried as he charged forward.

Chie cursed under her breath as she pushed Haruka out of the way and quickly jumped out of the way. Anghel pivoted and gave chase to Chie, swinging his large sword wildly. Reacting quickly, Chie dodged each strike with ease while keeping her eyes cautiously trained on Anghel. One miscalculation would send her straight into the sword's path.

As Anghel swung his sword diagonally, Chie bounded out of the way and onto the wall, propelling herself into the air and onto the opposite wall. Using her momentum, she pushed herself from the wall and launched herself towards Anghel, swinging her right leg down on him.

In response, Anghel brought his sword over his head, blocking Chie's attack. Chie clicked her tongue and bounded away, putting a good amount of distance between her and Anghel.

"Higure, I'm warning you, cut it out!" Chie shouted.

"We are all bound by the Temporal Chains of past lives lost to the Demon Spores. Our fates cannot so easily be deviated!" Anghel announced loudly.

He gripped the handle of his sword tightly and raised it above his head while taking a step backwards to take a wider stance.

Haruka didn't know what to do. She was specifically told by Hanji to not interfere with the Zodiac member's battles. However, they were fighting in almost public. While not exactly within view of anyone, someone was bound to notice the noise the two were causing. Should she contact Hanji or-

She didn't have time to finish someone suddenly appeared from around the corner of the alleyway and stood behind Anghel. Haruka felt her heart sink and panic well up within her. They were caught.

Anghel paused and turned around only to be punched in the face, knocking him to the ground.

"I thought I felt two idiots nearby."

Haruka looked over with a gasp and was surprised to see the person was actually Kimizuki. He had a gym bag slung over his shoulder and the usual scowl on his face.

"Ah, Kimizuki-kun!" Haruka said in surprise.

Anghel groaned in pain while muttering about being in pain while rubbing his cheek where Kimizuki had struck him. Before he had a chance to react, Chie came forward and grabbed Anghel by the collar and shook him violently.

"Like I said, have you lost your mind! Put that stupid sword of yours away before someone else notices!"

Kimizuki let out an exasperated sigh as Anghel cried out another sentence strung together by phrases no one understood. All the while, Chie was shouting back at him to stop his nonsense.

Anghel was certainly a character, Haruka thought. His way of dress was certainly out of the ordinary, especially with all the bandages. And while she had no idea what he was even saying most of the time, he had quite the vocabulary.

She was also curious as how Kimizuki was able to find them in the first place, although she supposed that Chie and Anghel were being pretty loud.

"Where did you come from?" Haruka asked as Kimizuki walked around the two bickering and over to Haruka's side.

"Work." Kimizuki replied simply as he watched Chie try to get her point across to Anghel but failing.

Haruka did remember in a previous conversation where Chie mentioned offhandedly about Kimizuki having a part time job. Though she wasn't sure if he mentioned where he worked or not. And since he changed back into his school uniform, she couldn't gather any hints. She probably would guess that he would work as a part time store worker. Maybe at a grocery or department store.

"What exactly was going on before I came up?" Kimizuki asked nonchalantly.

Haruka let out an exasperated sigh before explaining how Anghel must have followed her and Chie when they went to go out grocery shopping, causing quite the ruckus.

"...And then Higure-san suddenly challenged Satonaka-san to a battle."

Kimizuki exhaled with a small growl in his tone in exasperated. "I should have known…"

With a frown, he walked over Chie and Anghel and placed a hand over both of their faces and roughly forced them apart from their bickering.

"Cut it out you two or else you'll attract unwanted attention. You're lucky no one else noticed you two idiots' ruckus."

"It wasn't my fault!" Chie shot back as she struggled to pry Kimizuki's hand off her face. "It was this idiot's idea to fight outside the designated area!"

"We, the Red Lotus Fetters must always be ready for combat within the Cosmic Soup of Time!" Anghel shouted, causing Kimizuki and Chie to groan in unison.

Seeing an opening, Chie grabbed Kimizuki's wrist and twisted it inwards and pushed his elbow forward. A look of pain came over Kimizuki's face as his arm was forced backwards, allowing Anghel to escape from his hold and took hold of his other arm.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU ALL DOING?!" Kimizuki shouted.

Haruka couldn't help but giggle at the sight of Kimizuki yelling insults at the two while they started pushing him around in good humor.

"You all seem to be pretty close with each other." Haruka said with a giggle.

Kimizuki whirled around, a deep blush staining his cheeks. "H-hah?! The hell are you talking about! There's no way I'd be close to these morons-"

Before Kimizuki could finish however, Chie shoved Kimizuki's face to the side with her hand as her eyes lit up as if an idea popped into her head.

"I have an idea. Why don't we all have a hot pot at Hanji-san's place?"

"It's too warm for hot pot." Kimizuki complained as he pushed Chie's hand away from his face.

"Alright, you two be a gentleman and carry the groceries." Chie said at complete disregard of Kimizuki's statement.

"Are you even listening?!"

"Are we returning to the Haven of sustenance?" Anghel asked in excitement as Kimizuki groaned in defeat.

* * *

When Hanji opened her front door, she looked surprised to find several people around the table with a large pot of bubbling liquid in the middle. She blinked a couple times as if trying to process what she was seeing.

"Why are there so many people in my house?"

"Sorry for the intrusion!" Chie said with a big grin.

Kimizuki responded with a quick "hey" as Anghel watched in anticipation at the boiling pot of soup.

"Ah, welcome back, Hanji-san," Haruka said. "Sorry about all the sudden company. I ran into them while I was out shopping."

"It's no problem," Hanji said as she closed the door behind her and sat down at the table in between Kimizuki and Anghel. "It's actually pretty nice to come home and have dinner waiting."

Haruka smiled happily while also letting out a sigh of relief.

"Where did you go by the way? Haruka-chan said you were supposed to be cleaning." Chie said.

Hanji smiled while rubbing the back of her head sheepishly. "I finished early so I decided to take a walk around the estate. I also had to go check on something real quick."

"I'm impressed you even got this room cleaned," Kimizuki said as he looked around. "Though I'm pretty sure you just shoved all your junk into your room."

Hanji chuckled nervously while shifting her gaze to the side while Chie and Haruka looked at her with sheepish expressions.

The soup was boiling by now as steam poured out of the pot once the lid was removed. Chie took a large whiff and sighed in content.

"Oh man, this smells great!"

"Don't hog all the meat, there are others here too." Kimizuki said as he started fishing for one of the mushrooms.

"I'm still a growing girl! Besides, you're plenty tall already. Give some of us smaller people that height." Chie shot back as she took a large portion of meat and placed it in the broth.

Hanji only laughed as Kimizuki used his chopsticks to try and pry the cooking meat from Chie's, which ended in the two angrily snapping chopsticks at each other. Anghel ended up joining the fray by demanding a battle with Kimizuki right there and now, causing a rather annoyed and hot headed reaction from the bespectacled boy. It wasn't long until Chie started demanding a rematch from him as well, reminding him of how their battle was prematurely interrupted.

Haruka watched the scene in intrigued amusement as Kimizuki started calling the two of them morons again. The scene honestly made Haruka happier than she expected and was grateful to be surrounded by such colorful people. While they may be loud, they were certainly kind and fun people to be around.

However, amongst the happiness, there was also a pang of what seemed to be a bit of sadness resonate in her chest. Haruka shoved the feeling aside, not wanting to let any melancholy ruin the mood. For the time being, she contented herself in watching the three bicker in good humor.

* * *

A knock sounded at the door and a short-statured boy stepped into a tidy room with several decorative antiques placed on top of shelves and drawers. The room was rather spacious with several bookshelves and a large bed in front of an equally large window that overlooked the estate.

A young man wearing a simple, dark gray Japanese robe stood in front of the window, staring up towards the sky.

"What are you looking at?" the boy asked as he set down a book he brought onto the small table in the middle of the room and sat down on one of the cushions.

"For some reason it seemed to be pretty lively in the lower half of the Zodiac quarters." the young man answered in a soft voice.

"Mmm, it must be because of that outsider that was said to have moved into the estate." The younger boy said casually as he flipped through his book in search of the page where he left off.

The young man stiffened at the boy's words before turning to face him. "What do you mean by that?"

A look of mild exasperation came over the boy's face. "Don't tell me you didn't know."

"Who invited them in?!" the young man demanded, ignoring the boy's question.

The boy sighed at his friend's lack of awareness of the situation.

"From what I've heard, it was Hanji-san that invited the outsider to stay at the estate."

"And Seijuro-sama allowed it?!"

The boy nodded. "Seems like it."

The young man gritted his teeth in frustration and confusion.

"I don't understand. What are they all thinking letting in an outsider like this? Don't they realize they're putting our positions in jeopardy?"

The boy remained silent as the young man turned back towards the window and glared hard in the direction of the lower half of the Zodiac's living quarters. He raised his right hand that was covered in white scales and had long sharp talon-like nails. A thin bandage wrap was bound around his hand in some attempt to cover the scales. He flexed his claw, allowing the joints to crack.

"Whoever this person is, they need to leave immediately."


	5. Project Typhoon

_**Chapter 5: Project Typhoon  
**_

Students often dreaded starting school again. Whether it was because they were anxious about fitting in, being able to make new friends, or wondering if they could keep up with their studies. For Kimizuki, he dreaded the thought of school because that meant he wouldn't be able to train for ranking battles as often as he'd like.

Being ranked seventh, just outside the top half of the ranks was just painful. Being so close and yet so far always gnawed at him. This was probably the last chance he would have to try and get a high ranking before the new school year started.

The sixth ranking rotated zodiac members way too frequently so it was a bit of a gamble to depend on it. If he were to get a more solid ranking, he would have to go after the fifth rank. For as long as he could remember, the top five ranks were occupied by the same five members. And out of those five, the fifth rank was the weakest. By no means was the fifth rank weak, but compared to the other four, they fell just a bit short.

'I can do this.' Kimizuki said to himself as he walked down the path that lead to the upper half of the Zodiac's living quarters.

Cherry blossoms were blooming all around the area, littering the walkway with pink petals. Kimizuki narrowed his eyes at the sight. Cleaning all of the petals up later will be a pain and made a mental note to do it later. Spring was a sign of a new beginning, but to Kimizuki, it was just another passing season. Nothing ever changed within the Zodiac estate. It was as if time stood still aside from the changing of the trees' leaves.

However, Kimizuki supposed a small bit of change did enter the estate recently. Though he doubted it would make much of a difference in the long run. He quickly pushed the thought to the side when he spotted someone walking along the porch of one of the Zodiac houses. They were carrying a foldable, metal ladder under their right arm while holding a long gripped pruning shear in their left.

His jaw tightened upon seeing the person he was looking for. He unconsciously paused, feeling a bit of anxiety build up within him. However, he didn't have long to dread on those emotions when the person paused and glanced over at him curiously.

Kimizuki clicked his tongue in annoyance and forcefully shoved his anxiety to the side. He wouldn't allow such feelings to get in his way, not now.

"Hakuryuu!" Kimizuki called out in determination. "I'm here to challenge you for your rank!"

The young man stared at him with a hard, almost chilling gaze. He let out a quick exhale through his nostrils and allowed his shoulders to sag a little. Setting the equipment down on the side, he climbed off the porch and onto the ground.

"Hm… I guess it was only a matter of time before you would all try to come for my rank." the young man mumbled.

Kimizuki swallowed nervously as he quickly took a fighting stance. In a sudden flash of light, a pair of swords connected by a long wire appeared in his hands.

A chilling smile suddenly appeared on the young man's face as he lifted his right hand, revealing it to be a white-scaled claw that was wrapped in loose bandages. He raised it in front of him and it grew nearly ten times its normal size in an instant, tearing through his sleeve and bandages as if they were nothing.

"I believe you are severely underestimating me, Shiho." the young man said as he narrowed his eyes.

* * *

Anxiety pricked at Haruka's nerves as she frantically typed a worried text to Natsume. The whole reason she even came to live in this city was to go to the high school she had chose. However, now that school was about to start, Haruka was starting to get nervous.

While starting a new school was not new to her, this would be the first time she'd probably be staying at the same school for all three years. As her anxiety started rising, her phone suddenly buzzed. She immediately flinched and scrambled to prevent herself from accidentally dropping the phone. Upon looking at the text, Haruka couldn't help but let her shoulders sag.

 _If you can live at that zoo of exotic beasts, school should be easy._

Letting out an exasperated sigh, Haruka switched the screen off. That was certainly no help. As much as she loved Natsume, there were times where she just wanted to whack him over the head. Though she doubted she'd actually be able to do that.

"Everything alright?" Hanji asked, sitting across Haruka at the living room table with several papers scattered around her.

"Don't worry, everything is fine." Haruka replied with a reassuring smile.

Hanji hummed in an unconvinced tone before scooting around the table and over to Haruka. She slung an arm around the younger girl's shoulders, causing her to let out a squeak of surprise.

"Awww, don't be so shy~ We're housemates after all." Hanji said with a wide grin while playfully shaking Haruka.

Haruka stammered a few nervous and frantic "ums," not really knowing how to respond as Hanji merely laughed at her expense.

She wasn't able to properly respond when Hanji suddenly stiffened. The older woman whipped her head to the side and stared hard at what Haruka thought was just the wall.

"Don't go outside for a little bit." Hanji said in a serious tone.

"W-What's happening?" Haruka asked nervously.

As if answering her question, several tremors occurred, causing all the objects in the room to quiver. Out of reflex, Haruka grabbed Hanji's arm to try and steady herself. Several more tremors followed in random intervals before it finally settled. Haruka slowly let go of Hanji's arm and looked up at the older woman with a bewildered expression.

"A high ranking Zodiac member is fighting. So it's probably going to be pretty brutal. Definitely don't want to be caught in the crossfire," Hanji said with a slightly apologetic tone as she reached over the other side of the table to pick up her notebook.

Haruka nodded. She definitely didn't want to be in that predicament again. However, despite being safe, Haruka couldn't help but feel anxious. Just how powerful were the high ranking members to cause such powerful tremors? There was no doubt that the people in the outer parts of the estate could feel them. What do they think of them?

"Ah, before I forget," Hanji added as she idly flipped through the pages of the notebook. "There will be someone from the Zodiac who will be keeping tabs on you at school. To make sure you keep our secret."

Haruka looked at Hanji in surprise as the older woman gave her a sympathetic smile and ruffled her hair.

"Try not to take it personally. It's one of the agreements for you to stay here."

It made sense. Considering how things were in the estate, it seems as if it took a lot to keep the Zodiac thing a secret. There was no way they would not be cautious having her stay here with them. Especially since she was a complete outsider.

However, what confused Haruka the most was that Hanji spoke as if not all of the others won't be going to the same school as her. Considering the high school she chose to attend was the closest to the gated community, she figured all of the members in high school would go there.

"Are the others not attending the same school?" Haruka asked.

Hanji shook her head. "No one actually goes to the same school here."

Now that surprised Haruka. She could understand if a few went to different schools. But _all_ of them? It seemed a little strange.

Deciding to let the topic slide, she turned back to Hanji.

"Um, about the one who will be watching me, have I met them?"

"I don't think so," Hanji said with a small chuckle. "I'm pretty sure he would have left a big impression on you if you had."

Haruka blinked, unsure if it was supposed to be a good or bad thing.

"What is he like then?" Haruka asked.

Hanji hummed in thought and glanced up at the ceiling briefly before looking at Haruka with an uncertain expression. "If I had to describe him in one word, I'd say shady."

'Shady?' Haruka repeated in her head questionably. What does that even mean?

* * *

Kimizuki fell to one knee while still trying to hold himself up with one of his twin swords. He was breathing heavily as sweat dripped down his forehead. His clothes were torn in several areas as if they were ripped apart by a wild animal while his glasses sat crooked on his face with one of the lens cracked.

On the other hand, his opponent who was standing several feet away from him with only a few rips in their clothing and didn't seem to be in any way exhausted. Kimizuki swore under his breath. His opponent was far stronger than he had anticipated and berated himself for underestimating his strength.

He supposed this was his karma for being too impatient. His thoughts were immediately interrupted when the other Zodiac charged towards him and swung their large claw down on him. Kimizuki cursed under his breath before quickly darting out of the way with what little strength he had left.

However, in his exhausted state, his foot slipped, sending him crashing to the ground in a clumsy manner. Kimizuki turned over and felt his heart drop when he saw the dragon standing right in front of him. Looking down at him with impassive eyes, the dragon zodiac flexed his large claw.

Kimizuki immediately brought up his swords in a defensive manner despite the weak trembling in his arms.

"Why don't we call this off?" the dragon said. "There's no reason to finish this considering how you can hardly stand."

Kimizuki stared at the man in disbelief. Was he really telling him to give up? Pausing to reflect on his words for a brief moment, one short phrase came to mind.

 _"Poor thing."_

Kimizuki ground his teeth together. To even suggest something like that caused anger to bubble up and threaten to overflow within him. He gripped the handles on his twin swords tightly before swinging wildly at his opponent. Though he was easily dodged.

"Cut the pity crap," Kimizuki growled. "Let's just finish this!"

The dragon blinked in surprise by his sudden outburst. He heaved a sigh and raised his claw over Kimizuki.

"...As you wish."

* * *

After about ten minutes or so, the noise outside finally died down and Hanji moved out onto the porch to get some air while she wrote her notes. Haruka followed and sat down next to her, debating whether to take a walk or not. The weather seemed to pleasant and Haruka thought it'd be a nice way to take her mind off the incoming school year… for a little bit at least.

Before she could decide however, she noticed something in her peripheral and turned to see Kimizuki and Chie. Her eyes immediately widened in horror upon seeing the state Kimizuki was in. Chie was helping him walk and had Kimizuki's arm slung over her shoulders as she supported his weight. He had four large tears across his already tattered, hooded jacket. In contrast however, Hanji's eyes twinkled with curiosity as she bounded over to the pink-haired boy.

"Oho~ Looks like you had a run in with someone pretty feisty," Hanji said as she examined Kimizuki's clothes. "Let me guess, let me guess! It was the dragon, wasn't it?"

Kimizuki groaned in annoyance before looking away, refusing to verify her answer. Hanji took his silence as a yes and giddily continued to examine his condition.

"I can't believe you thought you could win against the fifth rank," Chie chided. "Pfff, come on."

"Hah?! Like you can do better, number eight?"

"You wanna go?! In your condition I can wipe the floor with you, easy!"

"Um, are you okay?" Haruka cut in, asking in concern. This was probably the worst she's ever seen anyone after a battle. Granted there haven't even been that many battles since she started staying, but still.

Kimizuki paused and raised his eyebrows slightly before he let out a weary sigh. "I'm fine. I'm just tired."

Haruka let out a sigh of relief. While his clothes were shredded, Haruka didn't see a spot of blood. The whole concept of them not being physically hurt in their battles was still difficult to wrap her head around. However, the proof was infallible as there wasn't a scratch or bruise on him despite the state of his clothes.

Though upon closer inspection, Kimizuki looked absolutely exhausted. His eyes were drooping as if fighting off sleep and was hunched over as if it was too much of a bother to stand upright.

Chie suddenly grinned. "Oh? You sure calmed down fast~"

"Yeah, because Nanami is much more calming to be around than you."

Haruka couldn't help but blush at the comment while the two erupted into another argument. Hanji on the other hand didn't seem to take care of what was happening as she closely examined Kimizuki's state.

"Hooo… He really did a considerable number on you," Hanji said with a hum off intrigue. "These marks look bigger than usual… You were pretty rash about this battle, weren't you?"

Kimizuki huffed as he narrowed his gaze. "I let my guard down, okay?! It won't happen again."

Hanji tapped her chin thoughtfully before smiling. "Shiho, I'm going to need you to strip so I can check to see if there were any marks left on you from the attacks."

All eyes turned to Hanji in disbelief as Kimizuki visibly blanched.

"W-Wha-?!"

Before waiting for approval, Hanji was already trying to slip his shirt over his head. Kimizuki let out a sound that seemed to be a mixture of a squeak and a yelp much to his embarrassment as his face turned red. He struggled to keep Hanji from taking off his shirt while yelling at her to cut it out.

Chie sputters in amusement before breaking out in laughter as Haruka quickly looked away in embarrassment. Without warning, Kimizuki suddenly dropped to the ground and successfully slipped out of his shirt. The sudden movement threw Hanji off balance and seeing his opportunity, Kimizuki bolted away from her as fast as he could.

"YOU'RE CRAZY! JUST LEAVE ME ALO-"

Before Kimizuki could finish, his feet somehow slipped out from underneath him and he ended up flopping face first into the ground.

"Kimizuki-kun!" Haruka cried as both Chie and Hanji let out a sigh beside her.

"Looks like he's completely done," Chie said in exasperation. "Better go pick up the pieces."

"I-Is he going to be okay?" Haruka stammered, still a little perplexed by the whole situation. "His clothes were in tatters…"

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure his pride was just a bit dinged is all," Hanji said as she held out Kimizuki's shirt in front of her and examined it. "Though his clothes are a completely different story. But it's nothing that can't be replaced."

Haruka glanced over at Hanji with a worried expression as if silently asking if she was sure. Hanji couldn't help but chuckle at this habit and waved a hand in a reassuring manner.

"Don't worry, he just needs a good night's sleep is all. Since we don't get hurt from our battles, it takes a toll on our energy levels instead."

Haruka's shoulders relaxed a little, though she was still a little apprehensive about the whole thing. As she thought more about the Zodiac, the more questions she started to think up. Such as, was the dragon really that brutal? What kind of person does that make them? Not to mention, Hanji referred to the Zodiac member that will be watching her at school "shady" earlier.

There were still several members that Haruka had yet to meet. She didn't think much of it before, but she was really starting to worry about what kind of people the others were. Maybe there was a reason she hadn't met them yet...

She quickly sent a text to Natsume asking what he thought about the dragon of the Zodiac. Though after she sent it, she couldn't help but wonder if Natsume even knew all of them. How does Natsume feel about this whole Zodiac ordeal? She didn't have long to wonder when her phone vibrated.

 _He's a little weird. Why?_

No matter what, Haruka felt like she never got any straight answers when asking about the other Zodiac members. However, something about his answer calmed her down a little bit. Natsume gave no indication that the dragon was dangerous or that she should steer clear of them.

Haruka quickly texted a short response along the lines of "just wondering" before looking at Hanji from the corner of her eyes. The older woman seemed to finish looking over Kimizuki's torn shirt and had sauntered over to Kimizuki and Chie to help the boy back to his place.

Haruka wondered if it would be worth it to ask Hanji about the dragon. So far, Hanji has been nothing but ambiguous about the individual Zodiac members as if saying "find out for yourself." Haruka didn't feel like dealing with roundabout answers and decided that she would take the walk she thought about earlier.

"I'm going to go take a walk." Haruka said as she stepped down from the porch.

"Oh?" Hanji said as she and Chie got Kimizuki to his feet. She glanced up towards the sky briefly before looking back over at Haruka. "In that case, why don't you go take a look at the cherry blossoms."

"There are cherry blossoms here?" Haruka asked, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

"Yup!" Hanji said with a big grin. "It's one of the few beauties we get to see here in the estate. They're over by the upper half residencies. Just follow the road. You have to see it while you're here."

The thought of seeing cherry blossoms soon replaced her anxieties about the Zodiac as she thanked Hanji. Haruka gave a hum of excitement before hurrying down the path that lead to the upper half of the Zodiac living quarters. She would save her questions for a later date.

"Um, Hanji-san…" Chie said as she glanced over at the older woman with a skeptical expression.

Hanji looked over at her with an oblivious smile while humming, much to Chie's exasperation.

"Nevermind… Let's just get this idiot to his place."

* * *

There were only a handful of times where her parents took her out to see the cherry blossoms bloom. The last time was probably when she was eight or nine, she wasn't sure really. However, as she got older, her parents got more and more busy with their work so Haruka had to settle with watching them on tv. It wasn't the same but it wasn't as if she could just go and see it by herself. No, that would have just been even more lonely.

After a while of walking, the housing looked to be in better maintenance and Haruka figured she finally made it to the higher ranked area. She often forgot how large the estate and constantly underestimated the time it would take her to get from one place to another. If she wasn't following a road, she probably would have gotten lost.

However, once she spotted a large mass of pink, excitement rose in her chest and she picked up her pace before she stood in front of the blooming cherry blossoms. Hanji was right, the sight was amazing. Despite it being inside and estate, there were quite a few cherry blossoms to behold.

The flowers rustled in the calm breeze, allowing some to be swept up in a gentle whiff of air. Haruka took a deep breath as she felt a sense of calmness wash over her. Allowing herself to revel in the stillness of the scene, she pushed back her anxiety. She knew those feelings would return once she walked away but wanted to live in the moment as long as she could, taking in all the natural beauty and stillness.

While she was consumed by the sight of the cherry blossoms, she failed to notice someone walking towards her from behind. As they drew closer, they flexed a large claw at their side.

"You there!"

* * *

It wasn't long until Chie and Hanji finally got Kimizuki to his doorstep. Once they managed to get through the door, they passed through a well organized and seemingly just cleaned living room and kitchen. They climbed the stairs up to Kimizuki's room and dumped him onto his bed.

Kimizuki let out an annoyed groan. Despite having his eyes closed, he was still aware of what was going on. However, despite being conscious, his body felt heavy as cinder blocks and his eyes were sealed shut. It was frustrating to not be able to move his body, but he supposed it's what he deserved for rushing into a fight he wasn't ready for. He still had a long way to go before he was ready, much to his frustration.

He couldn't help but grimace internally when he heard Hanji wanted to examine his body. Thankfully, Chie stopped her before the older woman could do anything. This was probably the first time Kimizuki was grateful to Chie for anything. Eventually, he heard the door close and silence followed soon after.

Exhaustion set into his bones as he felt himself sinking deeper into the bed. It was only a matter of time before sleep overtook his senses. As he slowly drifted off, a voice in the back of his mind chanted:

 _Keep struggling. No matter what it takes. No matter how many people you have to step over. Keep struggling. Keep struggling. Keep struggling..._


	6. Droplets that Cause Ripples

Restlessness pricked at his dragon claw, causing his fingers to twitch. Kija had to pause before he accidentally tipped over the vase that held his flower arrangement. His eyes wandered from the freshly pruned cherry blossom branches to his dragon claw. Ever since his battle with Kimizuki, Kija has been feeling a bit on edge. He wasn't sure why he was feeling so uneasy and just couldn't relax. He tried thinking about different things, but his thoughts would always loop back around to what he was trying to avoid. It was frustrating especially since he had won the battle and successfully retained his rank.

Perhaps it was how Kimizuki responded during their battle. Kija pulled up a chair and sat down heavily. He stared lazily at the vase of flowers as he rested his cheek against his left hand that was propped up on the table.

He was trying to be mindful of the younger male's state, but it seemed to have backfired. Why was he so angry? Maybe he was just overthinking this as he did most things. He let out a sigh as he tapped his claws impatiently on the table.

"Young master, is your hand injured?"

Kija glanced over to the side to see his grandmother standing in the doorway of the hall.

A soft expression came over his face as he shook his head. "I'm fine. There's no need to worry."

The old woman let out a heavy sigh. "If something happened to you, I'm not sure if my heart could bear it."

"You're overreacting. There is never any permanent damage."

Though his words were harsh, his voice and expression was gentle.

"Yes, but please take care in not making any more marks on the table from your nervous habit." the short statured woman said with a hint of humor in her voice.

Kija paused and glanced down at the table to find several new dents amongst the already existing ones in the table's surface where he had been tapping.

"Hmph, that pink-haired boy sure was pretentious. To think he believed he would stand a chance against you." His grandmother huffed as she placed a roll of bandages on the table in front of him.

Kija inhaled deeply before letting out a sigh as he proceeded to wrap his claw in clean bandages. While he had won, he'd be lying if he said Kimizuki wasn't stronger from last time. He'd have stay on guard if he hoped to retain his ranking in the future.

As Kija's grandmother climbed up onto the stool in front of the kitchen sink to begin doing the dishes, she paused upon glancing out the window. She leaned towards the window, opening her eyes wide to try and get a clearer view.

Kija looked over at his grandmother and blinked in confusion. "What are you looking at?"

After a moment, his grandmother relaxed and looked over at him. "It seems like someone is wandering around just outside the house."

Kija frowned. "Is it another Zodiac member?"

"No, I don't think I've seen her before."

Kija stiffened. Could it possibly be the outsider? The one that the others have been talking about? Uneasiness settled deep in the pit of his stomach as he clenched his jaw. Kija immediately stood up and marched towards the door.

"I will go deal with them."

His grandmother called after him to wait but he refused to stop. He had been reciting exactly what he had to say to this outsider as soon as he met her. He didn't know what the others had been thinking in allowing this person to stay in the estate, but he was about to make sure they would leave immediately. For all he knew, they were throwing the balance off in the estate and he wasn't sure if he liked it.

Word travels fast around the estate considering how confined the space was. However, he couldn't understand why no one notified him personally about the matter. Usually, if something big happened, there would be a meeting of some sort.

 _"Why are you so afraid of letting an outsider in? Are these your actual feelings or is this you just following the rules?"_

Kija unconsciously grimaced at the memory. When he had met with that person a few days ago, he hadn't expected the confrontation to go in that direction. He had hoped to get his thoughts across and come to some sort of agreement. However, he found himself even more confused now.

What was wrong with following the rules of the estate? And did those two things have to be separate? He shook his head, not wanting his uncertainty to ruin his resolve. Pushing his worries aside, he continued forward.

Walking out onto the porch, he instantly found the person he was looking for. She seemed to be preoccupied with looking at the cherry blossoms and hadn't noticed him. Kija narrowed his eyes and felt his claw tense up at his side. He would put an end to the confusion she had stirred up in the estate, including him. Even if Seijuro allowed it, he just couldn't stand by and allow this woman to do as she pleased without any regard for their positions.

"You there!" Kija called as he quickly strode over to her.

The girl flinched and quickly whirled around. As soon as their eyes met, Kija immediately froze. Time seemed to stand still as Kija stood there gaping at the young woman in front of him. He felt something stir in his chest, though he wasn't sure what it was. His earlier anxiety suddenly disappeared, leaving him in a state of warmth and confusion. This girl was not supposed to be here. However, he couldn't find any of the words he had practiced to say.

She looked almost as awestruck as he was. Her golden eyes were wide with wonder and her mouth slightly parted. A small breeze ran through her hair while cherry blossoms wafted around her as if creating a beautiful painting. Kija couldn't tear his eyes away from her. She looked absolutely stunning.

It felt like one of those romantic moments where the main character meets their love interest for the first time with the love at first sight cliche. Though Kija was too mesmerized to be embarrassed about the thought at the moment.

He felt like he was being drawn to her. Like an emotional bond forming beyond his control. Something he couldn't quite fathom nor explain. As if his entire being was calling out to-

A sudden loud clap shocked both Kija and Haruka out of their daze. Kija's hand immediately went up to his chest, feeling as if his heart had nearly flown out. He took several deep breaths as if he were holding it for a while. How long had he been caught up in that trance?

Glancing to the side, he found a familiar blue-haired boy looking at him with a mildly exasperated expression.

"W-W-What are you doing, Nagisa?! D-Don't go sneaking up on me like that!"

"You guys didn't seem like you would respond to me any other way," Nagisa replied while scratching his cheek sheepishly.

Kija's face flushed brightly before whipping his head towards Haruka. She also seemed completely taken off guard as she stared at Nagisa in shock. Her body seemed completely stiff as if she had no idea how to react.

"Are yo-"

"I see you've met the reptile duo," Hanji said as she suddenly appeared while draping her arm around Haruka's shoulders. "Congrats on discovering two new Zodiac members~"

Kija wasn't sure how many surprises he could take in one day.

"Hanji-san? What are you doing here? What happened to Kimizuki-kun?" Haruka asked in surprise.

"I wanted to make sure you didn't get lost," Hanji said with a chuckle. "And don't worry, Shihou was safely delivered back to his place."

Haruka blushed a little and turns her head slightly to the side in embarrassment. Kija blinked a little, finding the sight a little cute.

The thought made Kija go rigid. What in the world was he thinking?! He quickly shook his head, desperately trying to tame the rampant thoughts coursing through his mind but to no avail.

"Kija-san?"

Kija jolted a little before he glanced over to see Nagisa furrowing his brow in concern at him.

That's right. He had to get his act together. He couldn't go around making others worry about him. Quickly clearing his throat, Kija steeled his expression.

"What exactly is that crazy woman doing here?"

"Well, I bumped into Hanji-san on my way over," Nagisa replied. "Like she said, she wanted to check up on her."

"That's right!" Hanji said excitedly while she looked over at Haruka. "But enough about me. I'm sure you're dying to know who these two are am I right?"

Haruka gave a small nod as if she didn't know how else to respond.

Hanji chuckled at the response before she glanced over at Kija and Nagisa. "You two probably haven't had the chance to meet her yet. So, allow me to introduce to you to Haruka Nanami!"

Haruka awkwardly waved and nodded her head in acknowledgement as Hanji bounced over to the other two to introduce them.

"This here is Nagisa Shiota, the snake of the Zodiac and coming in at number nine in the ranks," Hanji said, motioning towards the shorter, blue-haired boy.

"Uh… it's kind of embarrassing how low I am," Nagisa said as he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"Don't worry about it too much. You just have some catching up to do, that's all," Hanji said as she pat the top of Nagisa's head. "It's nothing to be embarrassed of."

Kija frowned but before he could say anything, Hanji cut in.

"And this beautiful specimen is Kija Hakuryuu! Ranked at a solid placement of fifth and the dragon of the Zodiac."

Kija's pale complexion instantly reddened in embarrassment upon hearing him being referred to as "beautiful." Though he could have done without the specimen detail. He glanced over at Haruka to find her staring at him with a terrified expression.

Kija blinked in confusion. What happened to have her expression suddenly change? Haruka's gaze drifted downward and Kija followed her gaze until it settled upon his dragon claw. She took a couple steps backwards and brought up a trembling hand to her chest defensively.

He unconsciously clenched his claw into a fist while biting his lip. There really shouldn't be any reason he should be surprised by this reaction. This is the exact reason why outsiders shouldn't be allowed in. No outsider could ever understand what they had to uphold.

Before panic could truly set in, Kija was surprised to see Nagisa come forward. He quietly, almost unnoticeably went over to Haruka and extended a hand to her. Haruka visibly flinched and jerked her head towards Nagisa. The small boy gave her a soft smile.

"It's nice to meet you."

Haruka glanced from Nagisa's face to his hand a few times as if unsure of what to do. After a moment, she eventually took Nagisa's hand into hers.

"It's… nice to meet you as well."

Nagisa gave her a gentle yet firm shake in a reassuring manner. Haruka's shoulders slowly dropped into a more relaxed state much to Kija's surprise. How did Nagisa even do that?

Kija glanced over at Hanji to see her staring at Haruka and Nagisa quietly. She wore a neutral expression, making it difficult to tell what she was thinking. Usually she'd either be contemplative or bubbly. But even then it was still difficult to comprehend what was on the older woman's mind.

"There's no need to be wary of him. Kija-san is a lot nicer than he seems," Nagisa said.

Kija couldn't help but twitch a little at that statement. What was that supposed to mean? He pushed his annoyance to the side and glanced over at Nagisa with an uncertain expression. Nagisa tilted his head slightly and shifted his eyes towards Haruka for a brief moment before back to him.

While Kija knew what he should do, the awkward atmosphere was preventing him from acting. He bit the inside of his cheek and furrowed his brow. His eyes darted back and forth for a moment before he let out a soft exhale through his nostrils in an effort to calm himself and clear his thoughts. After a moment of hesitation, Kija finally walked over to them. He stood beside Nagisa and gave Haruka another stiff yet polite bow.

"I-It's… a pleasure to meet you."

"I-It's nice to meet you too…" Haruka said as she gave him a small bow in return.

Kija's eyes flicked to Haruka's face before quickly averting his gaze, finding the ground more interesting at the moment.

"Kija-san," Nagisa chided gently, causing the white-haired male to flinch.

Despite Nagisa's slight scolding, Kija's eyes darted to the side, desperate to look at anything else besides Haruka. His heart would beat ridiculously fast by just having them in close proximity. What was wrong with him?

Without warning, Hanji reached over and grabbed Kija's dragon claw, causing Kija to flinch at the sudden contact. The older woman stared at his dragon claw with a furrowed brow. Kija was about to ask what she was doing before she started picking at the scales.

"What are you-?! Stop it! That hurts!" Kija cried as he yanked his hand away.

"Oh come on! I would really appreciate it if I could just get one little sample to study~" Hanji said with a large energetic grin on her face.

Kija twitched in annoyance. There was something about her tone and expression that he didn't trust. Hanji attempted to pick at his scales again, causing Kija to start yelling at her to stop once more.

Nagisa watched the two with a sheepish smile as Haruka tried to stifle the giggle that bubbled up by putting her hand over her mouth.

"Ah, um, did you come to see the cherry blossoms by any chance?" Nagisa asked.

Haruka nodded. "Hanji-san recommended I go see them since they're in bloom."

"Mm, they are beautiful at this time of year," Nagisa said as he looked up at the pink flowers. "Kija-san does a good job taking care of all of them."

"What?!" Haruka said, her eyes wide with surprise.

Nagisa smiled. "He makes sure all the cherry blossoms are healthy every day."

Haruka turned her gaze over to Kija who was still having a one-sided argument with Hanji. Her expression softened and slowly lowered her hands to just below her chest. The stiffness in her shoulders relaxed and looked back at Nagisa.

"He… does seem like a nice person."

Nagisa smiled and nodded before he proceeded to engage Haruka in some small talk.

Kija huffed in annoyance and turned his head to the side. He felt like this argument was going absolutely nowhere. Though he supposed he shouldn't be surprised.

Hanji chuckled and gave Kija a teasing grin. "Hey, if you want her to leave so much, you should just scare her off now."

Kija glared at her. He's had quite enough of this woman's teasing for one day. It felt like all of his energy was drained from his body. All he wanted to do now was just curl up in his bed and take a nap. He glanced over at Haruka and was surprised to see a small smile dancing across her lips as she chatted idly with Nagisa.

Kija couldn't help but stare at Haruka in a trance-like state. His mind was completely blank and everything around him seemed to fade off into obscurity. It took him a moment before he realized what he was doing and quickly shook his head. A small blush dusted his cheeks as he cleared his throat in a clumsy attempt to gather himself.

"I-It's none of your concern! Just go home already!" Kija said with a stubbornly flustered expression.

He turned on his heel and hautily walked back towards his house.

What was going on with him? Moments ago he was determined to tell her off, but could hardly utter a single word to her without stammering. He just wanted to find a hole and bury himself in it just to escape his embarrassment. Maybe he was getting sick.

"Um, Kija-san? Are you okay?"

Snapping out of his thoughts for the umpteenth time today, Kija blinked and looked over to see Nagisa peering up at him with a raised brow.

"Yes. I-I'm fine," Kija answered, though his voice peaked a little, much to his embarrassment.

Seeing that Nagisa wasn't at all convinced, Kija cleared his throat once more before heading back into the house with the blue-haired boy following after him.

"She seems like a nice person." Nagisa commented as the two walked into Kija's living room.

Kija huffed as he sat down on one of the cushions beside the table. "Good person or not, she is still an outsider."

"You seemed pretty captivated by her not too long ago."

Kija cursed at how many times his face turned red today. Burying his flushed face in his hands, he let out an exasperated groan as his grandmother walked into the room from the kitchen while carrying a tray.

"Young master, is something wrong?"

"We just met the outsider staying at the estate," Kija said, his face still buried in his hands.

"Oh? Was that the person I saw outside? I heard she's a very cute girl," Kija's grandmother said nonchalantly as she set a tray with a couple cups of tea on the table.

"She is," Nagisa replied as he took one of the cups with a polite nod to Kija's grandmother.

"Nagisa!" Kija shouted as Nagisa smiled sheepishly with a little bit of blush tinting his cheeks.

Kija couldn't help but sigh in exasperation. Everyone so far seemed quite taken by the girl. Though he'd be lying if he said he wasn't interested in her. The thought caused him to narrow his eyes. That strange feeling he felt when he first laid eyes on her confused him. It was the first time he'd ever felt like that. However, he couldn't say it was an unpleasant feeling.

There was something about her that intrigued him, but he didn't know what it was yet. He unconsciously clenched his dragon claw into a fist as he bit the inside of his cheek. Nagisa flicked his gaze over at him but remained silent as he took another sip of his tea.

For now, Kija decided it wouldn't hurt to watch her for a little bit. At least until he found out why he felt so drawn to her or if he has a feeling she is putting them in jeopardy.

 _That'll be enough_. Kija thought to himself.


End file.
